1252 Performance

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justeleblanc · #26 Post by **justeleblanc** » Wed Oct 25, 2006 1:35 pm

I guess James Fox wasn't in the movie.

dadaistnun · #27 Post by **dadaistnun** » Wed Oct 25, 2006 2:02 pm

justeleblanc wrote:I guess James Fox wasn't in the movie.

He has blocked it all out.

#28 Post by **Jeff** » Wed Oct 25, 2006 3:20 pm

Warner Bros. wrote:We have special plans for PERFORMANCE, but no date

Ashirg wrote:Features:
Featurette (Includes new featurette: Influence and Controversy)
Interview(s) (Vintage BBC Interview with Mick Jagger)

I guess I read too much in to Warner's use of the phrase "special plans." I was expecting something like alternate versions, a Nic Roeg commentary, or Donald Cammell: The Ultimate Performance. Apparently, "special plans" means "standard featurette."

justeleblanc · #29 Post by **justeleblanc** » Wed Oct 25, 2006 4:01 pm

They may not have been able to get the features they wanted... either the cost was too high or the producer wasn't interested. I'm fine with just the bare bones, a commentary on this movie might ruin it for me -- it's one of the few films like that.

Gordon · #30 Post by **Gordon** » Wed Oct 25, 2006 4:15 pm

How do we know for sure that those are the full specs?

Lino · #31 Post by **Lino** » Thu Oct 26, 2006 3:28 pm

And exactly which version are we getting? I do hope that the official announcement clears all our doubts.

Oh, and that cover is dire...

dadaistnun · #32 Post by **dadaistnun** » Thu Oct 26, 2006 4:04 pm

This would have been nice:

Gordon · #33 Post by **Gordon** » Thu Oct 26, 2006 5:13 pm

Performance (DVD)

Rating: R
Runtime: 105 mins

The 2004 version was 105m 27s, according to the BBFC entry the longest version available so far. According to Cammell, the film had a longer introductory segment (30 minutes?) that showed us the world of Chas and Turner in more depth.

I'm happy with the 105-minute version for now, though I'd love to see a Roeg-approved restoration/reconstruction of the initial, 1969 cut.

Lino · #34 Post by **Lino** » Thu Oct 26, 2006 6:32 pm

I do hope we can see some of those deleted scenes in some way or another, be it as extras or part of a documentary/featurette. It would be nice if one of the interviewees would address them, at least.

justeleblanc · #35 Post by **justeleblanc** » Thu Oct 26, 2006 8:11 pm

A nice price, too!

nazarin · #36 Post by **nazarin** » Thu Nov 02, 2006 3:24 am

The 2004 version was 105m 27s, according to the BBFC entry the longest version available so far. According to Cammell, the film had a longer introductory segment (30 minutes?) that showed us the world of Chas and Turner in more depth.

I'm happy with the 105-minute version for now, though I'd love to see a Roeg-approved restoration/reconstruction of the initial, 1969 cut.

Check out Rebecca and Sam Umland's book, Donald Cammell: A Life on the Wild Side, in which a detailed history of the cuts is discussed. The 105m 27s version is the longest available (and probably forever will be), although the cut originally approved by John Calley was 107m 57s; Ted Ashley subsequently cut 2m 30s (largely violence in the first half). There can be no Roeg-approved cut restoration because he wasn't involved in the re-edit in 1970, done by Cammell and Frank Mazzola.

Lino · #37 Post by **Lino** » Fri Nov 17, 2006 3:25 pm

Full specs:

* New featurette Influence and Controversy
* Vintage featurette Memo Song from Turner
* Theatrical trailer
* Languages: English & FranÃ§ais
* Subtitles: English (feature film only)

Slightly disappointing specs there. I was hoping for a full-on double-disker after all this waiting time. And they did say they had special plans for this title on this year's chat. I wonder what they are -- not even an audio commentary is provided. :-k

Lino · #38 Post by **Lino** » Thu Dec 14, 2006 2:45 pm

The UK is also getting a release on March, 12. Click here for the Play.com listing and the original theatrical trailer (which I've never seen but it's actually quite good).

pemmican · #39 Post by **pemmican** » Sun Dec 24, 2006 8:10 am

I haven't looked at it in awhile, but I was really impressed with the Japanese VHS release of this film - it's in widescreen hi-fi, with really lush colours (unlike the washed-out VHS versions I'd seen here). The voices all sound like they're originals, as I recall; there were scenes I didn't remember from the versions I'd seen in North America, and the runtime is 105 minutes. It might make a useful point of comparison against the DVD release, if anyone can get ahold of it; but it looks like it's now OOP in Japan. Amazon Japan listing here.

If anyone has friends in Japan, it might be findable at a used video store. It wasn't difficult to spot when I was over there (1999-2002).

P.

pemmican · #40 Post by **pemmican** » Wed Jan 10, 2007 3:04 pm

Anyone wanting to get a look at the Japanese widescreen edition in the Vancouver area... January 19th I'll be playing it for a few friends. Get in touch...

A.

dadaistnun · #41 Post by **dadaistnun** » Thu Jan 11, 2007 1:29 pm

Article on Cammell at Film Comment's site.

dadaistnun · #42 Post by **dadaistnun** » Fri Jan 19, 2007 4:37 pm

Nice piece on the soundtrack by Tim Lucas on his blog.

Buttery Jeb · #43 Post by **Buttery Jeb** » Sat Jan 27, 2007 1:15 am

Tim Lucas' initial thoughts, from the Video WatchBlog:

I received my advance copy of PERFORMANCE today and, though it's a busy time here, I wanted to post a quick report.

I was a bit unnerved to see that the packaging carries an R rating -- THAT'S a first! -- but the picture quality looks extraordinary and, best news of all, the disc runs 105m 18s by my time counter... which is a few seconds longer than either the Warner PAL VHS or Warner's previous domestic laserdisc version, both of which clocked in at 105m 12s, according to Rebecca and Sam Umland's DONALD CAMMELL: A LIFE ON THE WILD SIDE. With a movie like this, of course, even a couple of seconds could mean a world of difference. I'll post something more detailed once I've had a chance to properly absorb the disc and its featurettes.

Speaking of the featurettes, "Influence and Controversy" (a new featurette about the film's censor problems) runs about 25m, and "Memo from Turner" (a look at the filming of the song with behind-the-scenes material) runs close to 5m. There is also a 2m 44s trailer.

It looks like a terrific disc.

-BJ

Lino · #44 Post by **Lino** » Sat Jan 27, 2007 2:26 pm

Tim Lucas goes on to say:

Warner Home Video's forthcoming DVD of PERFORMANCE is the most beautiful, comprehensive, and comprehensible presentation of the film I've ever seen... but.

The tragic "but" to which I referred in my opener is a very irritating and needless one. During the "Memo from Turner" sequence, when Turner (Mick Jagger) raises a glass in a toast and cries "Here's to Old England!" (reprising an earlier line of Harry Flowers, played by Johnny Shannon), his lips move... but... no sound comes out! Other dialogue heard during the song is intact, so why not this? Boo, hiss.

How the producers of this disc could have been sharp enough to track down millimeters of never-before-seen footage to include in this gorgeous assembly, making it the most complete and brilliant-looking version of PERFORMANCE ever, yet so careless as to mute an important (at least resonant) line of dialogue, I can't explain. I hate to rain on this release over something so minor, especially when it accomplishes so much else, but the error is minor only in length; anyone who already knows this movie is going to miss that line, and wince in pain when they discover it for themselves.

I'd still recommend this disc very highly. If you haven't seen PERFORMANCE, you must; if you're already among the converted, you know you'll have to get this -- just resign yourself to the fact that this won't be the last time we line up to buy this title.

MichaelB · #45 Post by **MichaelB** » Sat Jan 27, 2007 3:03 pm

nazarin wrote:There can be no Roeg-approved cut restoration because he wasn't involved in the re-edit in 1970, done by Cammell and Frank Mazzola.

Not only that, Roeg nearly disowned the film when he saw their cut, which he thought was incomprehensible. (He was shooting Walkabout in Australia at the time, which is why he had no involvement in the editing himself).

I'd quite like to see the original cut out of historical curiosity, but I'd be mildly surprised if it was half as impressive as the Cammell/Mazzola version - the impression I get is that most of the film's editing innovations were introduced during the re-edit, not the original assembly that Warners rejected.

Cinesimilitude · #46 Post by **Cinesimilitude** » Wed Jan 31, 2007 8:42 am

Lucas states in his blog that the PAL VHS is 105m 12s, and then when speaking of the NTSC dvd, he states it is 105m 18s. I wonder if they did a bad conversion or if they cut 4 minutes once they had it in NTSC...

Lino · #47 Post by **Lino** » Fri Feb 02, 2007 6:49 pm

PERFORMANCE: A Photographic Exhibition featuring the work of Donald Cammell and Nicolas Roeg

ranaing83 · #48 Post by **ranaing83** » Sat Feb 03, 2007 4:48 am

Just got back from a screening at the Lincoln Center's Cammell retro, and I was blown away. I wasn't sure what to expect, but the film was nothing like I was imagining it to be, by which I mean to say it exceeded my expectations. Upon first viewing, the feeling I get is that I need to see it again to comprehend it. I can't wait for the dvd.

Another thing... I don't remember hearing anyone say memo from turner, nor do I remember seeing lips moving without sound. When does this line happen in the film?

kinjitsu · #49 Post by **kinjitsu** » Sat Feb 03, 2007 4:55 am

ranaing83 wrote:I don't remember hearing anyone say memo from turner

Memo from Turner is the title of the song that Jagger sings in the film.

ranaing83 · #50 Post by **ranaing83** » Sat Feb 03, 2007 4:30 pm

Oh, ok. Thanks.

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