TV Reviews : Showtime’s ‘Deceptions’ Lacks Heat, Fizzles

Word from the tabloids is that the grapplings between Nicollette Sheridan and Harry Hamlin in a new Showtime “erotic thriller,” “Deceptions,” are really, really, really, really, really hot.

Well, one “reality” is really sufficient. But ultimately, the movie, premiering on the cable network at 8 Sunday night, evolves into a ho-hum affair. By the end of it all, we’re pretty cooled off.

The premise is tricky enough: We see Adrienne (Sheridan) loving up her husband in their glamorous home in the Hollywood Hills; then late that night, we see him all masked up sneaking in slow motion through the house with a murderous knife in hand. Not knowing it’s him, she kills the intruder. Detectives Nick (Hamlin) and Harley (Robert Davi) investigate. She, of course, is suspected.

Nick is smitten with her and they soon grapple, too; Harley keeps detecting and grows more curious as the loose ends become too conveniently tied up.

But what about this $2-million insurance policy? Where is this curious Marta who looks incredibly like Adrienne? Who is this actor who is short? Who’s really trying to kill who, and how and why?

By now, with the plotting turning so contrived and goofy, we really, really, really, really, really don’t care. One really isn’t enough.