Si j'étais toi

A direct-to-video release in the United States, this French directed film stars Americans and is a remake of a Japanese film called Himitsu. Although the film deals with the supernatural, it is not a J-horror remake. In fact, it's quite a touching and intelligent movie. I think the reason it was never released over here is because it is an intelligent film. The attempts to market it as a thriller, from the title and the video cover, probably wouldn't have worked if it had been released normally. David Duchovny stars as an optometrist whose wife and daughter (Lili Taylor and Olivia Thirlby) get into a serious car accident at the open of the film. His wife passes away in the emergency room, but his daughter survives. As soon as she wakes up, however, she claims not to be the daughter, but the wife trapped in her daughter's body. Smartly, the film doesn't spend too much time with Thirbly's attempts to convince Duchovny – the evidence is overwhelming. The film spends most of its time with the difficulties the peculiar situation raises, especially between the married couple. The two also find evidence, when Thirlby talks in her sleep, that the daughter is still somewhere inside her. They expect she may come back to them one day, but then the wife's personality will disappear. The film is far from perfect. Its best in the small scenes, and worst when director Perez is trying to create set-pieces. You can see the cheapness especially in the emergency room sequence – it looks nothing like an emergency room. The real news here is Olivia Thirlby's performance – her first, if we are to believe the opening credits. And proud this film should be to introduce her – it was obvious enough even in a mediocre film like Juno that Olivia Thirlby was going to be a star. Of the four films I've seen her in so far, this is the best proof that she's a keeper. She plays two different characters, one over twice her own age. The role requires a tour de force performance, and Thirlby delivers one effortlessly.

This movie turned out to be a total emotional roller coaster for me. I haven't cried so much for a long time. The combination of real life drama with fiction made the movie feel very spiritual and much deeper than most realistic dramas feel. Apart from the supernatural premise, the rest of the movie is very realistic and well acted. Duchovny's performance is excellent and I love the peaceful aura he always portrays. When it comes to Olivia all I can say is that her beauty and acting talent go hand in hand to create a heartbreakingly beautiful synergy. She strongly reminds me of Milla when she was younger. This film contains such a rich and complex artistic portrayal of some of the most beautiful and painful aspects of life that I'm tempted to consider it epic. I think this is a prime example that cinema is evolving in the right direction. Thank you so much for creating art like this.

Even though his performance was decent for the most part, it was still horrible casting. Duchovny can do comedy and wit, but show emotion? Too forced Dave, too forced.

The Secret was a good surprise though. After a horrible car crash involving Benjamin Morris's (Duchovny) wife and daughter, the man becomes involved in a horrible occurrence. Turns out, that after dying, the spirit of the mother becomes trapped in the body of the reawakened daughter. Freaky Friday much?

The body swap idea that has been seen from time to time has been given a more mature approach here. The mother has to get an education that she didn't get, via her daughter's body; she also has to experience teenage angst, constant attacks by horny males, and the self realization that she is she, but she is not she. Ben believes her, but things get far more psychologically complex as the movie progresses. Thankfully, nobody asks advice from a priest (about damn time).

The script was well done, but what made it above average were the characters and situations that arose. Plot holes further hurt the movie, not to mention Duchovny's unconvincing portrayal as a father who EASILY gets aroused by her daughter's possessed body. Maybe it was because of the director (Vincent "Crow 2" Perez), or maybe it was because of both.

Now, Olivia. What a magnificent, tour-de-force performance you gave here. You did everything Dave didn't do- convince. People, better watch this one, she has a bright future ahead of her. Lilly Taylor gives a subtle performance here, almost too subtle. You forget about her the minute she stops showing up in the movie. Wait, what she in the movie?

Statement: The Secret is a huge surprise. Almost too huge. I expected a clichéd Dragonfly, but I got an intelligent viewing. Not to mention that this movie features one of the best performances of 2007 by the beautifully talented Olivia Thirlby. You can't expect much more than this I'm afraid, but you won't expect much by looking at the DVD cover.

6.7/10

This film had a decent cast, but some of them didn't seem to fit their parts. Now David Duchovny did a pretty good job. He seemed normal and the parts when he was losing it, he was very believable. Lili Taylor did a good job, but I wish she was in it more. Olivia Thirlby plays the daughter of Duchovny and Taylor. The mom's soul goes into the daughter, so through most of the movie, Thirlby had to pretend to act like Taylor. At parts it seemed like she was, but other parts not so much. I did on the other hand like the story a lot. The ending was a little off for me, but it wasn't terrible. The movie really didn't have a scare factor. The film sets itself up to be scary, but it is not. It is mentally creepy though. If you pay attention to the characters, you will see what I am talking about. So overall, it was decent, but not the best of its genre.

I'm not entirely sure why most sites put this under the "Thrillers" genre rather than "drama", but I'm glad i saw it regardless.

Based on the 1998 book 'Himitsu' by Japanese writer Keigo Higashino, this is a heart-strings story with its fair share of humor. But it's definitely a tear-jerker, and a very good one at that. It was shot in Montreal (hence all the French names in the credits) but could be set anywhere in the States.

If you happen to really like Lili Taylor & David Duchovny as I do, then you're in for a treat. The young actress is also wonderful and holds her own against these two veterans. I was relieved that they did not cross the line in this version (you'll know what i mean when you watch the film); it would have cheapened the film and changed the whole message and dynamic.

All in all, a film worth watching.

~NN