Performance (1970)

A violent gangster seeks refuge from the mob in the Bohemian home of a former rock star.

Directors:

Donald Cammell, Nicolas Roeg

Writer:

Donald Cammell

Stars:

James Fox, Mick Jagger, Anita Pallenberg

Nominated for 1 BAFTA Film Award.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
James Fox	...	Chas
Mick Jagger	...	Turner
Anita Pallenberg	...	Pherber
Michèle Breton	...	Lucy (as Michele Breton)
Ann Sidney	...	Dana
John Bindon	...	Moody
Stanley Meadows	...	Rosebloom
Allan Cuthbertson	...	The Lawyer
Anthony Morton	...	Dennis (as Antony Morton)
Johnny Shannon	...	Harry Flowers
Anthony Valentine	...	Joey Maddocks
Kenneth Colley	...	Tony Farrell (as Ken Colley)
John Sterland	...	The Chauffeur
Laraine Wickens	...	Lorraine

Storyline

Chas, a violent and psychotic East London gangster needs a place to lie low after a hit that should never have been carried out. He finds the perfect cover in the form of guest house run by the mysterious Mr. Turner, a one-time rock superstar, who is looking for the right spark to rekindle his faded talent.

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Plot Keywords:

basement | shared bath | acid | sex | recluse | 

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Taglines:

See them all in a film about fantasy. And reality. Vice. And versa.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for sexual content, nudity, drug material and some violence

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

4 September 1970 (Finland)

Also Known As:

Performance

Filming Locations:

Wandsworth Bridge, Wandsworth, London, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

£750,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Goodtimes Enterprises

Technical Specs

Runtime:

105 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Tuesday Weld was supposed to play Pherber and Mia Farrow was up for the part of Lucy, but they were both injured before filming started and had to be replaced.

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Quotes

Turner: [to Chas] I know how you do it! I know a thing or two about performing, my boy. I can tell you.
Pherber: He had the gift too, once upon a time. You should have seen him ten years ago.

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Alternate Versions

According to co-director Cammell in a 90's documentary 'The Real Donald Cammell' the film originally featured roughly half an hour more of the otherwise short opening (london gangster) section of the film. The idea being that the film would show how the worlds of Chas,(Fox) and Turner,(Jagger) were linked by the idea of performance. It is alleged by Cammell that these scenes were cut at the 'suggestion' of infamous London Gangsters the Kray brothers, Ronnie and Reggie, for whom the scenes were too true to their London underworld 'Firm' to be shown. This footage is also referred to, as are many other lost, cut or 'alternative' scenes, in the numerous books either on or concerning the film.

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Connections

Referenced in Reflections of Evil (2002)

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Soundtracks

Wake Up Nigger
by The Last Poets
Written by Jalal Nuriddin
Courtesy of Douglas Records

User Reviews

"Time for a Change"

Just recently released on DVD, this film is, no doubt, about to have a whole new group of fans.

Here, questions of gender and sexuality are marred by the influence of drugs in the hippie enclave of Powis Square in '60s London. After a rapid fall from power within local crime syndicate, James Fox flees the mafia and finds refuge in the eclectic house of Mick Jagger. Jagger is living the life of the failed superstar with a small entourage of women; a recluse, whose appetite for sex and drugs is fueled by his royalty cheques. When this young gangster stumbles into his house, Jagger involves him into his kinky games, transforming him into one of his own. There is plenty of subtext here, if anyone is interested in digging deeper.

Perhaps the biggest letdown of the recent DVD release is that it was released in mono Dolby. Seeing as the soundtrack was released on stereo CD, why couldn't the audio, at least during the music sequences, have been similarly remastered?

The Stones rarely played "Memo From Turner" due to their "women troubles" that stemmed from the film. Jagger was sleeping with Richard's girlfriend on the set, or something to that effect. Anyway, "Memo From Turner" was released on the album "Metamorphasis" in 1976. The intro on the 1976 version is great, but the 1970 version on this album is one of the hottest tracks the Stones ever recorded without Mic Taylor. This song proves to be one of the first music videos ever made, as it appears in its entirety in Roeg's film.