''Beyond Desire'' is a 1995 American

action thriller film The action film is a film genre that predominantly features chase sequences, fights, shootouts, explosions, and stunt work. The specifics of what constitutes an action film has been in scholarly debate since the 1980s. While some scholars such as D ...

produced by Frank Cinelli, directed by

Dominique Othenin-Girard Dominique Othenin-Girard (born 13 February 1958) is a Swiss-French film director. He is known for directing such films as '' After Darkness'' (1985), which was nominated for a Golden Bear Award, and '' Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers' ...

, written by Dale Trevillion, and starring William Forsythe and

Kari Wuhrer Kari Samantha Wuhrer (born April 28, 1967) is an American actress, model, and singer. She is known for her time as hostess of the MTV game show ''Remote Control (game show), Remote Control'' (1988–1989), her portrayals of Abby Holland, Abigail ...

. It was released first in Germany on July 13, 1995, followed by the United States on April 23, 1996 by Live Entertainment. It was released in the United Kingdom as ''The Last American Elvis''.

Plot

Ray "Elvis" Patterson, an ex-con, joins forces with a sexy, high-priced

call girl A call girl or female escort is a prostitute who (unlike a street prostitution, street walker) does not display her profession to the general public, nor does she usually work in an institution like a brothel, although she may be employed by ...

named Rita to help clear his name from a murder charge 14 years earlier while a brutal gangster is after him for the location of some stolen money. Ray served 14 years at

Nevada State Prison Nevada State Prison (NSP) was a penitentiary located in Carson City. The prison was in continuous operation since its establishment in 1862 and was managed by the Nevada Department of Corrections. It was one of the oldest prisons still operat ...

, after being wrongfully convicted of the murder of his girlfriend. Now released, Ray sets out to find the true murderer and bring him to justice. Ray and Rita head into

Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

together, where Ray believes he will find the answers as to who the killer is. But all is not as it seems as Frank, Rita's boss, turns out to be the man Ray seeks. Non-stop action and adventure ensue as bullets fly and Ray and Frank go head to head for justice, Rita's heart, and the money that turned up missing from the crime scene 14 years ago.

Cast

* William Forsythe as Ray Patterson *

as Rita *

Leo Rossi Leo Rossi (born June 26, 1946) is an American actor, writer and producer. He is a character actor known for his role as foul-mouthed EMT Vincent "Budd" Scarlotti in the 1981 horror film '' Halloween II'', as the serial killer Turkell from the ...

as Frank Zulla *

Sharon Farrell Sharon Farrell (born Sharon Forsmoe, December 24, 1940 – May 15, 2023) was an American television and film actress, and dancer. Originally beginning her career as a ballerina with the American Ballet Theatre company, Farrell made her film debu ...

as Shirley

Production

Production took place in

. Minor filming locations included the

La Concha Motel The La Concha Motel was a motel that opened in 1961 and closed in 2004. It was designed by architect Paul Williams (architect), Paul Williams who was one of the first prominent African American architects in the United States and was also the ar ...

, the Vacation Village hotel and casino, and the

Riviera () is an Italian word which means , ultimately derived from Latin , through Ligurian . It came to be applied as a proper name to the coast of Liguria (the Genoa region in northwestern Italy) in the form , then shortened in English. Riviera may a ...

hotel and casino. Scenes were also filmed at

Hoover Dam The Hoover Dam is a concrete arch-gravity dam in the Black Canyon of the Colorado, Black Canyon of the Colorado River (U.S.), Colorado River, on the border between the U.S. states of Nevada and Arizona. Constructed between 1931 and 1936, d ...

's power plant.

Reception

"Only the easily-pleased will enjoy this silly saga about a prisoner of love who rights a wrong and salvages a call girl's bed-hopping existence.", commented ''TV Guide''. ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American online magazine, digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, ...

'' found that "The novelty lessens once the character acknowledges his resemblance to Elvis, but it’s still a chance to see how the King’s movie career might have gone in the worst possible world." ''

The Roanoke Times ''The Roanoke Times'' is the primary newspaper in Southwestern Virginia and is based in Roanoke, Virginia, United States. It is published by Lee Enterprises. In addition to its headquarters in Roanoke, it maintains a bureau in Christiansburg, ...

'' stated, "Mystery fans won't have much trouble predicting most of the plot turns, and the action scenes aren't all they could be, either. But the leads are everything you could ask for. Forsythe, who's also executive producer, brings his usual intensity, and Wuhrer, always in danger of falling out of her skimpy costumes, is convincingly sexy." The Canadian website MediaFilm assessed the film as follows: "Story with proven recipes. Average directing. Quite colourful acting by W. Forsythe."

References

External links

* * 1995 films 1995 action thriller films 1995 direct-to-video films 1990s American films 1990s English-language films American action thriller films Direct-to-video action films Direct-to-video thriller films Films directed by Dominique Othenin-Girard Films set in the Las Vegas Valley Films shot in the Las Vegas Valley English-language action thriller films {{action-thriller-film-stub