PERFORMANCE

Director Donald Cammell, Nicolas Roeg / 1970 / UK

Performance is the result of the combination of the talents of Nicolas Roeg (who made Walkabout) and Donald Cammell. It is a film which has troubled distributors, censors and critics throughout the world. Whatever else it may be, it is controversial, and at this festival it will be screened uncut.

Charles Devlin is the trouble-shooter for a crooked business organisation run by Harry Flowers. His brutal competence at his work is only matched by his position. However, he runs foul of the organisation and the police, when he kills one of Flowers' wealthy clients, and he is forced to flee for his life. By chance, his place of refuge turns out to be the domain ot retired pop star, Turner, who lives there with his two girlfriends. They guess that he is a gangster and probe him with drugs in order to 'get inside his mind". His personality collapses, whilst Turner, seeing his counterpart in the disintegrating Devlin, begins to shake off his inertia. Gradually, their positions are reversed.

Back To Index