Performance – 1970 | 105mins | Drama | Colour

Plot Synopsis

Performance is an artsy psychological melodrama that marked the directorial debut of cinematographer Nicolas Roeg; the film was co-directed and written by Donald Cammell. Warner Bros put the film on hold for two few years after filming while they tried to agree with Cammell on the final edit. Warner’s were then faced with the problem of how to market the film, whether to make it a Mick Jagger rock vehicle or promote it as a gangster film.

Set in 60s London, James Fox plays Chas Devlin, a petty gangster on the run from his gangland colleagues after the unauthorised killing of Joey Maddocks (Anthony Valentine). Chas must seek refuge while he waits to skip the country and visits an inconspicuous guesthouse in the hope of renting a room; he is initially turned down but due to his insistence gains a room. Chas finds himself staying in the strange household of ageing rock star Turner (Mick Jagger), and his two girlfriends Pherber (Anita Pallenberg) and Lucy (Michele Breton) for a weekend of identity assault. The reclusive Turner recognises something of his younger daring self in the violent criminal, and pushes open the boundaries of the villain’s experience with a mixture of sex, drugs and rock n’ roll. Chas begins to find his sense of identity completely undermined, he becomes a child lost in the wilderness of mind-expanding drugs orchestrated by the manipulative Turner. Chas begins cross-dressing with the assistance of Pherber, losing his sense of manliness he even admits Turner sexually attracts him. Chas attempts to get a passport from Tony Farrell (Ken Colley) so he can flee to America, but Tony double-crosses him and informs Chas’ boss of his whereabouts. It’s not long before mob boss Harry Flowers (Johnny Shannon) shows up to collect Chas, Chas is taken away on a final ride in the gangsters car leaving behind the body of Turner who he left with a bullet in the head – a final head trip.