Burning Desire, a lackluster, tedious film, failed to quench my thirst for sexy viewing material.  As a low-budget movie with lesser known actors and actresses, it presents its sexual fare with as much aplomb as a five dollar hooker.  Poor plotting and editing, corny dialogue, and close-ups clinical in their unwavering persistence, make this movie a turn-off.

The plot, flimsy as a negligee, involves two hopeful film students (Jill Hunter and Tony Ellis) who are attempting to close a contract with a producer.  The producer speaks with a diabolical laugh and has lots of red candles on his desk.  The subject of the student’s film is their fantasies – which we get to see, interspersed with dialogue and eventual hardcore action between the three main characters.

Herein lies the major fault of the film.  Since the scenes are all fantasies (no attention paid to character development), the movie blurs into one repetitious sex scene.  And it’s boring at that!  One fantasy, called “Merry-go-round,” has two people partaking in plain, dull sex. Another scene, supposedly involving two blondes, is really two brunettes having sex.  And so goes the rest of the movie.

Of the eight fantasy sequences, a few distinguish themselves.  The first involves an attractive policeman who submits to a bribe from a suspect unwilling to turn herself in. He gets all of the movie’s funny lines; if you think references to billy clubs and the policeman’s ball are funny, that is.  Another fantasy titled “Water-sports” (which does not live up to its description) stars Sunshine, a black woman perched on the edge of a tub.  She is pretty and passionate, the most convincing actress of the bunch.  There is the obligatory lesbian scene, with an assist by some man-make devices accompanied by Beethoven’s “Fur Elise.”  These scenes are a welcome change of pace.  Overall, the performers were well-built, especially the men, but were not outstandingly attractive.  They performed their roles with fervor, if not with ardor.

After viewing these fantasies, the fiendish producer puts the students to the test; he commands them to perform, the room then transforms to a smoky red haze. A statue of Michelangelo’s David on the producer’s desk reminds us that he is a purveyor of art. The couple is rather attractive: Jill Hunter possesses a lovely face and rather thin form, while Tony Ellis sports a reasonably trim body.  Both wear red underwear.  They are tireless and skillful; Hunter manages not to smear her red lipstick during her command performance. However, this scene drags on forever, Ellis being a man of great endurance, and one longs for release along with the couple.

This, then, is Burning Desire. Funny unintentionally, arousing accidentally, it is a throwback to the film of a decade ago, complete with pop music and rhinestone jewelry.  I found myself with my desire rapidly cooling and my hands reaching for the bag of cookies.