Sir Cliff is brilliantly cast as a smarmy young beat singer, ditching his real name to find success as Bongo Herbert, clearly based on Tommy Steele.
In sequences that now seem almost impossible to believe, we see Cliff abuse women, wallow in decadence and, most incredibly, hide beneath a sickening veneer of fake religion, in one classic scene singing The Shrine On The Second Floor, a horrible hymn to mother and God, before going home to beat up his old mum. Laurence Harvey is the fast-talking press agent and Sylvia Syms the ladylike stripper.
Director Val Guest enjoys the chance to spoof Soho, the BBC, coffee houses, showbiz sleaze and the entire pop business. His wonderful opening shot was, incidentally, recreated in its entirety for Absolute Beginners