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 | whipping | whipping scars | shared bath | pouring acid on a car | 

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Taglines:

This film is about madness. And sanity. Fantasy. And reality. Death. And life. 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

Did You Know?

Trivia

During the filming, Donald Cammell allegedly encouraged the cast and crew to take drugs and mingle sexually to help get into the necessary atmosphere.

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Quotes

Chas: I never wear hats.
Turner: Not even when performing?
Chas: Never. No.

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Alternate Versions

In most versions the voices of Johnny Shannon, John Bindon and Laraine Wickens have been overdubbed. This was because the actors' own voices were thought to be "too cockney" for non-UK audiences to understand. The 2007 Region 2 DVD (DY11687) features the voices of all three actors throughout the feature, none of the previous overdubs are present in this version.

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Connections

Featured in Hollywood Rocks the Movies: The 1970s (2002)

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Soundtracks

Dyed, Dead, Red
Written by Jack Nitzsche
Mouth Bow Solo and Vocal by Buffy Sainte-Marie

User Reviews

Psychedelic Borgesian masterpiece!

Thirty years after its release 'Performance' still remains one of the most controversial movies of the 60s/70s. For many it is an arty pretentious bore that is only worth remembering for being a mother lode of imagery that has been mined extensively by MTV "talents" over the last twenty years. (Cammell/Roeg must be up there with Bunuel and Kenneth Anger as the most plagiarized source for rock video!)

For the rest of us 'Performance' could well be THE great movie of the psychedelic era, rivaled only by Antonioni's 'Blow Up' and Jodorowky's 'El Topo'. 'Performance' merges the hard boiled Cockney gangster world of the Kray twins (exemplified by James Fox's brutal Chas) with the freaks of the rock/drug world (Jagger's enigmatic Turner) and shows they have as much in common as they differ. Reality and fantasy blur, gender and personas get confused, and Chas and Turner become increasingly hard to tell apart.

All of this unfolds to an ultra-cool soundtrack of The Last Poets, Randy Newman, Jagger's lost classic 'Memo From Turner' and former Spector/Stones/Crazy Horse collaborator Jack Nietsche's Moog. Add to this plenty of sex, trips and Jorge Luis Borges references, and you've got yourself a mind-blowing movie experience!! Highly recommended to Grant Morrison fans.

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:

GBP750,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Goodtimes Enterprises

Technical Specs

Runtime:

105 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1