RIP Anita Pallenberg!
Sad news: Anita Pallenberg, the actress and model who was a style icon and “It Girl” of the 1960s and ’70s, has died at the age of 73…Pallenberg was credited as the muse of The Rolling Stones – and here is a story I posted about her part in the film “Performance”, which led to a bitter feud between Mick Jagger and Keith Richards….
Have you seen this Mick Jagger movie?
As a Studio Executive said when he saw the film:
“Even the bath water was dirty.”
Hey, Let’s All Get Naked With Mick Jagger In A Bathtub!
Imagine Mick Jagger naked in a bathtub with a number of different women – in a movie performance he made at the height of the Rolling Stones popularity – around the time of “Honky Tonk Woman” and “You Can’t Always Get What You Want”…a classic British gangster movie that is now out on Blu-Ray!
“This Film Is About Madness.”
The original film poster says it all…but equally “mad” is what was going on with Mick Jagger and The Rolling Stones at the same time!
This is a classic movie tale: a film starring one of the world’s biggest rock stars, a film where he willing put himself naked in a bathtub – WITH KEITH RICHARD”S GIRLFRIEND! – is the stuff of movie legend!
Talk About Your Love Triangle!
Here are Mick and Keith with Keith’s girlfriend Anita Pallenberg – and Anita was about to star with Mick Jagger in a movie…you can only imagine the potential for trouble…
Jumping In The Tub With Mick!
The script was full of sex scenes, including several with Mick in a bathtub. Can you say…AWKWARD? Let’s get right to it – the movie that led to the Mick Jagger – Keith Richards feud!
Performance!
Warner Archive has a new Blu-Ray version of “Performance!” The film was a British gangster thriller starring Mick Jagger and James Fox – each playing dual roles! First, check out the trailer!
“Performance” is a 1968 British crime drama directed by Donald Cammell and Nicolas Roeg, starring James Fox and Mick Jagger, in his film acting debut.
The film was produced in 1968 but not released until 1970!
Why Two Years In The Vault?
So why was the film made in 1968, and released in 1970? First, let’s recap the plot of the movie….Chas is a violent and psychotic East London gangster – who needs a place to lie low after a hit that should never have been carried out. James Fox is terrific in the role of Chas…
Chas finds the perfect cover in the form of a 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. That is, of course, Mick Jagger – again playing two different roles.
Mick is GREAT in the film – starring as a faded rock star with many decadent nights…oh, and as you know, he was starring with Keith’s GIRLFRIEND!
Trouble On The Set!
As you can imagine, Keith wasn’t happy with his girlfriend’s movie choice.
According to wikipedia: “It was intended that the Rolling Stones would write the soundtrack but due to the complicated nature of the various relationships both on and off-screen, this never happened. It was widely rumored that Anita Pallenberg, then in a relationship with Keith Richards, and Mick Jagger played out sexual scenes in the film ‘for real'”…
You can imagine that these scenes could cause trouble in the band, especially since Anita Pallenberg was a beautiful model…here she is with Keith…not a wallflower, that’s for sure…
Whether true or not, the rumors swirled all around this film – gossip that the sex was real, that it broke up Keith and Anita…who knows the real truth, although there are some published accounts that say Anita was involved with both Stones…we’ll get Keith’s POV on this in a moment…
A Great “Performance!”
But forget about the gossip, the affairs, forget it all and just focus on the movie: the film is an explosive, violent and very graphic film – an experimental gangster film very much in line with the “anything goes” attitude prevalent in the late 60’s – and bravo to Mick Jagger for doing the film. If you have any interest in the counter-culture movies of the late 60’s and early 70’s, this is for you.
Keith Takes His Guitar And Goes Home!
Now, back to the stories of Mick and Anita: when Keith Richards heard the rumors that were swirling around, he apparently took to sitting in his car outside the house where the film was being shot. Ultimately, he didn’t participate in a soundtrack album…
The Film’s Notoriety!
The content of “Performance” was a surprise to the studio. It has been reported that during a test screening, one Warner executive’s wife vomited in shock. James Fox notes in Richard Lester’s TV series “British Cinema of the Sixties” that a Warner exec said of the scene depicting Jagger in a bath with Pallenberg and Breton, “even the bath water was dirty.”
This “Dirty Bath Water” Got Shelved!
The response from the studio was to deny the film a cinematic release! It has been claimed that at one stage Warner Bros. wanted the negative to be destroyed. Instead, it sat on a shelf for two years before finally being released.
Luckily for us, the film exists, and is now available on a beautifully remastered Blu-Ray, thanks to Warner Archive – and it is a flawed masterpiece…whether it was one of the first wedges between Keith and Mick isn’t known…
Keith Richards – “Life”
The Jagger/Richards feud goes far beyond this movie. Keith did, in fact, write about the circumstances between Mick and Anita – click this link and check it all out here:
Keith’s memoir is amazingly honest, acerbic, and fascinating to read…and the music is classic rock that has never aged…
For more on the Rolling Stones – 50 Years On! – check out this post:
https://johnrieber.com/2012/12/16/crossfire-hurricane-censored-c-blues-the-stones-turn-50/
And the story of Keith Richards continue to fascinate me…like the time he agreed to be interviewed on ABC-TV by legendary Writer Hunter S. Thompson!
You can read all about this madness – and see the interview in its entirety – by clicking on my story here:
Let me know if you’ve seen “Performance”, and what you think of it – and RIP to Anita Pallenberg…
Categories: 70's Cinema, 70's Music, Art, Awards, Books / Media, British Cinema, Classic Rock, Cult Movies, documentary films, Exploitation films, Film Fight Club, Film Noir, Great Films, Grindhouse, Hollywood, Independent Cinema, London, Memoirs, Movies, Music, Obscure Movies, Obscure Music, Revenge Movies, Talent/Celebrities, TV Show, Uncategorized
johnrieber 
I saw “Performance” so long ago that I have no recollection of it whatsoever; won’t read yr piece above til I’ve seen it again, for fear of spoilers.
Roeg is, of course, a brilliant filmmaker.
And Jagger?
A more than merely competent actor; he did a perfectly good job in the Emilio Estevez / Rene Russo / Anthony Hopkins (small but pivotal role) sci-fi thriller, “Freejack.”
Never did understand why he didn’t go for more movie roles.
Pallenberg was gorgeous; may she rest in peace, and condolences to all who are missing her now.
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It’s a truly unique film “of its time”, and worth seeing – Jagger does, indeed act very well and “Freejack” is an overlooked gem!
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Reblogged this on johnrieber and commented:
Today is Mick Jagger’s birthday. Celebrate by watching him bathe with his band mate’s girlfriend. Oh, the movie’s a classic, too.
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That line Even the bath water was dirty made me laugh.
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Thanks for your comment – it was a fascinating time in film!
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I can see that, looks as if censorship was getting more relaxed.
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