Part of Bowie"s power lies in his astonishing physical presence. Pale and emaciated, with streaks of red hair falling into mismatched eyes, Bowie requires little make-up to convince as an alien in disguise. A series of retro costumes – wide fedoras, loose high-waisted trousers, tight white T-shirts – draw out his androgynous beauty and emphasise Newton"s genderless nature. That blurring of gender boundaries is reflected too in Bowie"s frail physicality and delicate movements. Bowie"s Newton moves initially with the faltering steps of someone learning to walk again. When he collapses in a hotel lift, chambermaid and future lover Cindy Lou (Candy Clarke) scoops him into her arms, and carries him to bed as if he weighs nothing at all.