''Inferno'' (alternatively known as ''Desert Heat'') is a 1999 American
action film
Action film is a film genre in which the protagonist is thrust into a series of events that typically involve violence and physical feats. The genre tends to feature a mostly resourceful hero struggling against incredible odds, which include life ...
directed by
John G. Avildsen
John Guilbert Avildsen (December 21, 1935 – June 16, 2017) was an American film director. He is perhaps best known for directing ''Rocky'' (1976), which earned him the Academy Award for Best Director, and the first three ''The Karate Kid'' fil ...
, and starring
Jean-Claude van Damme
Jean-Claude Camille François Van Varenberg (, ; born 18 October 1960), known professionally as Jean-Claude Van Damme (, ), is a Belgian actor, martial artist, filmmaker, and fight choreographer. Born and raised in Brussels, Belgium, at the a ...
,
Danny Trejo
Danny Trejo ( ; born May 16, 1944) is an American actor. He has appeared in films including ''Desperado'', ''Heat'', and the ''From Dusk Till Dawn'' film series. With frequent collaborator and his second cousin Robert Rodriguez, he portrayed ...
and
Pat Morita
Noriyuki "Pat" Morita (June 28, 1932 – November 24, 2005) was an American actor and comedian. He was known for his roles as Matsuo "Arnold" Takahashi on ''Happy Days'', Mr. Miyagi in ''The Karate Kid'' film series, Captain Sam Pak on the sitco ...
. This was the last film directed by Avildsen before his death in 2017.
Eddie Lomax (
Van Damme) is a veteran soldier sick of life, wandering the desert looking for a reason to die. An incident with a few thugs from the nearby town, who steal Eddie's motorbike and beat him almost to death, sets him on a path of revenge.
Plot
The film opens as Eddie Lomax (
Jean-Claude van Damme
Jean-Claude Camille François Van Varenberg (, ; born 18 October 1960), known professionally as Jean-Claude Van Damme (, ), is a Belgian actor, martial artist, filmmaker, and fight choreographer. Born and raised in Brussels, Belgium, at the a ...
) drives an Indian motorcycle in an open desert plain (referred to as the Dry Lake). Soon enough, the motorcycle breaks down and Eddie dismounts, carrying nothing but his jacket, his .45 pistol, and a bottle of tequila. As he lies in the desert drinking, he eventually sees his friend Johnny Sixtoes (
Danny Trejo
Danny Trejo ( ; born May 16, 1944) is an American actor. He has appeared in films including ''Desperado'', ''Heat'', and the ''From Dusk Till Dawn'' film series. With frequent collaborator and his second cousin Robert Rodriguez, he portrayed ...
), a
Mexican Indian
Indigenous peoples of Mexico ( es, gente indígena de México, pueblos indígenas de México), Native Mexicans ( es, nativos mexicanos) or Mexican Native Americans ( es, pueblos originarios de México, lit=Original peoples of Mexico), are those ...
, to whom he had sent a postcard notifying him of his arrival.
In their conversation Eddie reveals that the surprise he wrote about in the letter was, in fact, the Indian motorcycle. He also reveals that he is there to kill himself as he goes into a drunken rage, revealing deep regret from their days in the Army, claiming that the souls of those he killed haunt him. Firing shots off in all directions, he vents his buried feelings to Johnny, and hopes he will "give him the OK to take a journey".
Soon after the shots are fired, a truck pulls up to Eddie, Johnny disappears, and it becomes clear that Eddie was hallucinating about him being present. Matt (
Shark Fralick), Jesse (
Silas Weir Mitchell), and Petey Hogan (Jonathan Avildsen), sons of Ramsey Hogan (
Larry Drake
Larry Richard Drake (February 21, 1950 – March 17, 2016) was an American actor and comedian. He was best known as Benny Stulwicz in ''L.A. Law'', for which he won two Primetime Emmy Awards. He also appeared as Robert G. Durant in both ''Darkm ...
) get out of the truck, Matt furious as one of Eddie's drunken shots almost killed him.
Eddie staggers to them, not wanting any trouble; Matt, however, insists that he apologise. Matt then proposes that they take the motorcycle, and they will forget about the gunshot. Eddie persists that the motorcycle is a gift for his friend, telling Matt to get off. Matt seems to comply, until he delivers a cheap blow to Eddie. After a fight, Eddie is left beaten and shot in his right shoulder. As the brothers stand over Eddie, another truck passes with a local restaurant waitress Dottie (
Jaime Pressly
Jaime Elizabeth Pressly (born July 30, 1977) is an American actress, fashion designer, and model. Best known for her role as Joy Turner on the NBC sitcom ''My Name Is Earl'', she won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a ...
) and cook Vern (Kevin West). Dottie expresses extreme concern; Vern simply drives on, not wanting any trouble from the Hogans. Matt begins to load the motorcycle onto the truck, instructing Jesse to make sure that Eddie is dead.
Jesse asks for Eddie's gun from Pete, who took it from the earlier struggle. Being the youngest of the three, Petey insists on doing the job. As Jesse and Matt load the motorcycle, Petey aims at Eddie's head. Eddie's eyes open briefly, which makes Petey uneasy. Two shots ring out, which make Matt and Jesse think that Pete shot Eddie twice. However, Petey froze and simply shot two rounds into the ground.
Johnny Six Toes finds Eddie and nurses him back to health. Eddie then comes back to town to recover his pistol from Leon (
Gregory Scott Cummins
Gregory Scott Cummins (born 1956) is an American character actor known for his recurring roles in ''It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
''It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'' is an American sitcom created by Rob McElhenney and developed by McEl ...
) and Lester (Neil Delama) in the pawn shop by killing them. Eddie falls for Rhonda Reynolds (
Gabrielle Fitzpatrick
Gabrielle Fitzpatrick (born 1 February 1967) is an Australian film and television actress. She first appeared in the Italian film ''Via Montenapoleone'' directed by Carlo Vanzina, and has since starred in 11 films, her most recent involvement b ...
), the other waitress, and enlists the help of Jubal Early (
Pat Morita
Noriyuki "Pat" Morita (June 28, 1932 – November 24, 2005) was an American actor and comedian. He was known for his roles as Matsuo "Arnold" Takahashi on ''Happy Days'', Mr. Miyagi in ''The Karate Kid'' film series, Captain Sam Pak on the sitco ...
) to help him dispose of the bodies.
Eddie then sets the two rival gangs against each other in a bloody path to recover his prized motorcycle for Johnny, have his revenge on the Hogans, and ultimately find a reason to carry on living. Eddie defeats Matt and is once again on the road with Johnny, riding with Rhonda.
Cast
Production
Filming
''
Variety
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' reported that filming started in June 1998 and had a planned schedule of eight weeks. The original cut of the film was known as ''Coyote Moon''. Van Damme did not like this cut and had the film recut. Avildsen unsuccessfully attempted to have his name removed from the film.
Release
Home media
On July 1, 2002 DVD was released by
Columbia TriStar Home Video
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment (abbreviated as SPHE) is the home video distribution division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation.
Background
SPHE is responsible for the distribution of the Sony Pictures lib ...
at the
UK in
Region 2.
On September 20, 2010 Jean-Claude Van Damme ten movie collection DVD was released; including nine action films they were: ''
No Retreat, No Surrender
''No Retreat, No Surrender'' is a 1985 martial arts film directed by Corey Yuen in his American film directorial debut. The film stars Kurt McKinney, with a supporting cast of Jean-Claude Van Damme, J.W. Fails, Kathie Sileno and Tai-chung Ki ...
'', ''
Nowhere to Run'', ''
Hard Target
''Hard Target'' is a 1993 American action film directed by Hong Kong film director John Woo in his U.S. debut. The film stars Jean-Claude Van Damme as Chance Boudreaux, an out-of-work homeless Cajun merchant seaman and former United States Forc ...
'', ''
Street Fighter
, commonly abbreviated as ''SF'' or スト (''Suto''), is a Japanese media franchise centered on a series of fighting video and arcade games developed and published by Capcom. The first game in the series was released in 1987, followed by six ...
'', ''
Sudden Death'', ''
The Quest'', ''
Double Team
In basketball, a double team (also double-team, double teaming, or double-teaming) is a defensive alignment in which two defensive players are assigned to guard a single offensive player.
Among basketball strategies in which defenders are assign ...
'', ''
Knock Off
Counterfeit consumer goods (or counterfeit and fraudulent, suspect items - CFSI) are goods, often of inferior quality, made or sold under another's brand name without the brand owner's authorization. Sellers of such goods may infringe on eith ...
'' and ''
Universal Soldier: The Return''.
Reception
Critical response
Larry Powell and Tom Garrett wrote in ''The Films of John G. Avildsen'' that "reviews were scarce and the few that did get published were cruel."
[ ]Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
, a review aggregator
A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...
, reports that 0% of five surveyed critics gave the film a positive review; the average rating was 3/10.
References
External links
*
*
*
*
Inferno
' a
Papystreaming
{{DEFAULTSORT:Inferno (1999 film)
1999 films
1999 action films
American action films
Films scored by Bill Conti
Films set in Louisiana
American films about revenge
Films shot in California
Films directed by John G. Avildsen
Films produced by Jean-Claude Van Damme
Patricide in fiction
1990s English-language films
1990s American films