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Secret
Taiwan film poster.
Traditional	不能說的秘密
Simplified	不能说的秘密
Pinyin	Bùnéng shuō de mìmì
Directed by	Jay Chou
Produced by	William Kong
Written by	Jay Chou To Chi-long
Starring	Jay Chou Kwai Lun-mei Anthony Wong Alice Tzeng
Music by	Terdsak Janpan Jay Chou
Cinematography	Lee Ping-pin
Distributed by	EDKO Film Cathay-Keris Films Innoform Media
Release date(s)	Taiwan: July 27, 2007 China: July 31, 2007 Hong Kong: August 2, 2007 Singapore: August 8, 2007 Thailand: November 8, 2007 South Korea: January 10, 2008 Japan: August 23, 2008
Running time	90 minutes
Country	Taiwan
Language	Mandarin

Secret (simplified Chinese: 不能说的秘密; traditional Chinese: 不能說的秘密; pinyin: Bùnéng shuō de mìmì), also known by its translation The Secret That Cannot Be Told, is a 2007 Taiwanese romance film. It is the directorial debut feature film of Taiwanese musician Jay Chou, who also stars in and co-wrote the movie.^[1]

The film has won several awards, including The 2007 44th Golden Horse Award, Best Visual Effects, The Outstanding Taiwanese Film of the Year, and Best Original Film Song.^[2]

Production

The film tells a "simple but very beautiful" love story, which Chou denies was adapted from his personal experiences.^[3] When the film debuted, Chou admitted that he drew from childhood experience for the plot, although his personal story was not as romanticized.

Filming for the movie began in January 2007 and was completed in March.^[4] Despite previous experience in filming music videos, Chou admits that movies are comparatively more challenging due to storyline and time constraints.^[5]

Because Chou was worried that people might question if he actually directed the film himself, he even refused veteran director Andrew Lau Wai Keung to visit him during shooting. However, Chou says that he did send a pilot film to Lau afterwards.^[3]

Unofficial sources strongly indicate, that as of 2009, Secret Part Two is in the talks.

Cast

• 周杰倫 (周杰伦) Jay Chou as 葉湘倫/叶湘伦 (Ye Xianglun Jay): Music student majoring in piano and lives with his father.
• 桂綸鎂 (桂纶镁) Kwai Lun-mei as 路小雨 (Lu Xiaoyu Rain): Music student who lives with her mother.
• 黄秋生 (黄秋生) Anthony Wong Chau Sang as 小倫爸爸 (Xianglun’s father): The discipline teacher of Xianglun's school and his father.
• 曾愷玹 (曾恺玹) Alice Tzeng as 晴依 (Qing Yi Sky): The girl Ye Xianglun met when he joined Dangjian. She always admired Ye Xianglun.
• 宋健彰 Devon Song as 阿宝/阿寶 (Abao Bob): Not a well-behaved student. Member of a rugby team.
• 黃俊郎 (黄俊郎) Huang Junlang as 阿郎 (Alang Lance): Abao's good friend, captain of the rugby team. Organised a dance party where he performs.
• 詹宇豪 Zhan Yuhao as 雨豪 (Yu Hao Howe): "Prince of the piano", a talented piano player, had a "piano battle" with Ye Xianglun.

Plot

Ye Xianglun, a music student majoring in piano, transfers to Tamkang(Danjiang)Secondary School. It is a school famous for musically talented students, especially for those who play piano. On the first day of school, as he wanders through the piano building, he hears a mysterious melody being played that leads him to Lu Xiaoyu, another piano major. When he asks her about the song she was playing, she tells him that it is a secret that cannot be told. The two develop a relationship that is clouded in mystery. When Xianglun tells Xiaoyu of the demolition of the piano building on graduation day, she teaches him the song that he heard on the first day of school.

However, when a mis-passed note leads to Xianglun's accidental kissing of another girl, Xiaoyu disappears for five months, only to return on graduation day and mysteriously disappear again. Xianglun asks around and discovers that Xiaoyu was actually a student from the class of 1979, who graduated 20 years ago. His father tells him the story of Xiaoyu, who claimed she time traveled to the present via a piece called "Secret" that she played on an old piano in the piano building. She had fallen in love with Xianglun, but the only barrier is that, in the present, the first person she sees on each trip is the only person that can see her.

When Xiaoyu was misled that Xianglun liked another girl, she returned to her time, 1979 for five months. During her absence, her story spread and everyone believed that she was crazy. Remembering that the piano room would be destroyed on graduation day of 1999, she tried time traveling to see Xianglun one last time, but was mislead once again that he liked another girl. Xiaoyu retreats back to her own time and fainted half way through due to an asthma attack, while trying to communicate with Xianglun via writing on a desk with white out.

After finally learning of Xiaoyu's story, Xianglun realizes that the piece that she taught him was "Secret", which had the power to take the pianist forward or backward in time depending on the tempo at which it is played. He rushes off to the piano room, which is ready to be torn down. As the demolition begins, Xianglun begins "Secret" from memory, recalling something Xiaoyu told him while teaching him the piece: "I always play it that fast when I go back". Just before the piano room is completely destroyed, Xianglun travels back to 1979. He sees Xiaoyu, and she sees him and smiles, but doesn't seem to know him. The last scene is when the 1979 Tamkang (Danjiang) Secondary School graduation picture is taken, in which Xianglun and Xiaoyu are present.

References to personal history

Jay added in elements in the movie that suggested he was paying tribute to his high school and favorite composer Chopin.

1. 淡江中學(Tamkang (Danjiang) Middle School): 2007 marks the 10th year he left his school.^[6] In the movie, he incorporated elements which reflected his actual experience in school, such as his stint as pianist for the school choir.^[7] In the movie, he was the orchestra’s pianist and played during high school graduation.
2. Chopin: There were several occasions when Jay paid tribute to his favourite composer.
   1. Right at the beginning of the movie, a lesson about Chopin was being taught in class. He was described as a gifted musician and composer.
   2. There were 2 paintings in the music room that were supposedly Chopin and his lover (George Sand). The conversation between Xianglun & Xiaoyu was about Chopin and his lover. Xianglun lamented that the two eventually parted ways. However, Xiaoyu seemed envious that the couple was able to spend 10 years together, which to the couple, was possibly a long time.^[8] Jay may have added this element (Chopin & lover) because the 10 years was the period of time in which Chopin produced his most outstanding work.
   3. Qing Yi (Sky) carried Chopin’s manuscript and kept it in her locker.
   4. Chopin's Waltz (Op.64 No.2 C# minor) and "Black Key" Etude (Op. 10 No. 5) feature in the 鬥琴(Piano Duel) scene. Note that the melodic sequence of the "Black Key" Etude that is performed in the movie includes both the introductory black key sequence, as well as an improvisation in which the introductory theme of the etude is transposed a half step higher and is played almost entirely on the white keys.

Awards and nominations

44th Golden Horse Awards

• Won: Best Original Film Song (Vincent Fang, Jay Chou)
• Won: Best Visual Effects (Victor Wong , Eddy Wong, Yiu Ming Cheung, Donnie Lai)
• Won: Outstanding Taiwanese Film of the Year
• Nominated: Best Supporting Actress (Alice Tzeng)
• Nominated: Best Original Film Score (Terdsak Janpan, Jay Chou)

References

External links

• Secret at the Internet Movie Database
• More info plot and spoiler for "Secret" movie