Someday or One Day (film)

Someday or One Day () is a 2022 Taiwanese romantic drama film directed by Huang Tien-jen. Serving as a sequel to the 2022 television series of the same name, the film features the original cast, including Alice Ko, Greg Hsu, and Patrick Shih. The production is a collaboration between Three Phoenixes Production and Wanda Media, with Gavin Lin and Hermes Lu, the creative team behind More than Blue, joining the project. Picking up from the conclusion of the television series, the story begins at a new starting point. Soul-stirring dreams of déjà vu bind the spirits of Huang Yu-hsuan and Li Zi-wei together. Through the familiar songs on a cassette tape, the two repeatedly meet, get to know each other, and fall in love. However, their reunion triggers another cycle, tightly linking their fates with Mo Chun-chieh, Chen Yun-ru, and Wang Chuan-sheng, as they once again face a crisis where the past and future intertwine.

Production Background

During a live post-screening broadcast of the series finale on 16 February 2020, Ma Yit-ing, producer of the TV drama "Someday or One Day", stated that there were plans to produce a film adaptation, but that this would only proceed if a strong script was available. Lead actor Patrick Shih, whilst attending an event on 11 March 2021, confirmed that filming for the film version would commence and revealed that the original cast would be returning. Filming for the "Someday or One Day" film adaptation commenced in early May 2021, but was suspended shortly afterwards due to Taiwan’s COVID-19 pandemic being elevated to Level 3 alert; production resumed in August of the same year, and the film wrapped on 7 October.

Executive producer Gavin Lin stated that, whilst working on the film with screenwriter Hermes Lu, they believed the most important thing was to preserve the original characterisations and personalities of the series, avoiding unnecessary reinterpretation, and to place these characters within a new narrative framework, allowing them to take on a new lease of life.He revealed that the film adaptation has enlisted Kuo Li-chi, winner of the Golden Horse Award for Best Sound Effects, to handle the sound design, and Kuo Hsin-tsung, winner of the Golden Horse Award for Best Visual Effects, to oversee the special effects design. Together, they will create a 360-degree surround sound experience and magical visual effects, giving audiences the immersive sensation of travelling through time and space alongside the characters in the film.He said that the film contains many Easter eggs paying homage to the TV series, and that the film serves as both the beginning of the TV series and the conclusion of the "Someday or One Day" story; he hopes audiences will go to the cinema to experience the story’s grand finale.

Director Huang Tien-jen said that the film is a continuation of the TV series’ story, but can be understood even by those who haven’t watched the series, with elements from both the old and new stories interwoven throughout.Producer Ma Yiting revealed that the film will explore the emotional entanglements within the ‘Fengnan Squad’, whilst retaining the mind-bending elements of the original series; the character audiences are most eager to see saved will also make a return in the film.On 20 December 2022, the official release date was announced. Lead actors Alice Ko, Greg Hsu, and Patrick Shih, along with producer Ma Yi-ting, executive producer Gavin Lin, and writer Hermes Lu, attended a media press conference to share their experiences and behind-the-scenes stories from the filming of the movie. Alice Ko noted that both the film and the TV series are mystery-thriller stories cloaked in a fantasy romance setting. She added that whilst some of the unresolved plotlines from the series will find resolution in the film, there may well be new unresolved elements. She believes that fans of the series will not only be able to revisit the Fengnan Squad when watching the film, but will also feel as though they are reuniting with old friends.Greg Hsu stated that the film adaptation serves as a gift to fans of the original series. He noted that the “Fengnan Squad” would appear with new character developments and storylines, and that the narrative expands beyond the series’ Möbius strip concept to incorporate ideas of multiple universes and parallel timelines. He also remarked that, compared with the series, which allowed viewers to gradually follow the storyline, condensing its 13 episodes into a film of just over an hour was a challenging task. As a result, audiences need to pay closer attention to each character’s state and to the structure of the different timelines.

Cast

Alice Ko portrayed both Huang Yuxuan and Chen Yunru. She stated that having the opportunity to reprise the same roles was a rare and special experience.She said she felt somewhat embarrassed seeing herself in a high school uniform on the big screen. Regarding her return to the film adaptation, she described her feelings as complex, noting that the early stages of filming were somewhat challenging, as if she were acting with memories from a previous life. She revisited the original series in preparation for the role. When returning to the same filming locations, she felt both happy and nostalgic, while also sensing a feeling of continuation. She also revealed that she often found herself laughing while reading the script, as the scenes she imagined seemed absurd and unconventional. With multiple identities appearing simultaneously in the film, she was curious about how these scenes would be presented, remarking that it might feel as though audiences were watching them perform “shadow clone” techniques on screen. Greg Hsu portrayed both Li Ziwei and Wang Quansheng in the film. Reprising the same roles, he said it felt as though he had to imitate his past self, describing the experience as unique and noting that these characters would remain significant to him throughout his career. He also remarked that seeing himself again as a high school student made him feel somewhat self-conscious. Due to portraying multiple identities and psychological states, he often had to film the same scene multiple times. He added that the film’s narrative is more complex and contains more information than the original series, and that differences in character and psychological perspective sometimes left him feeling disoriented about his identity and surroundings during filming. Patrick Shih portrayed Mo Junjie. Regarding his return to the film adaptation, he said he felt both excited and emotional. In particular, returning to the same filming locations in Tainan and wearing the Fengnan High School uniform again initially left him unsure of how to approach the performance.Regarding the reunion of the ‘Fengnan Squad’, he believes that, both on and off screen, they have matured considerably after everything they have been through during this period—a situation very similar to that of the characters in the drama, who have shed their school uniforms, grown up and stepped out into the wider world.

Other returning cast members include Kuo Wen-yi as Kunbu (real name Lin Xiaorong), a close friend and colleague of Huang Yuxuan; Zhang Kuang-chen as A-Tuo, Huang Yuxuan’s colleague; and Chang Chia-hui as Sister Na, Huang Yuxuan's supervisor. Special appearances include JC Lin as Liu Yuheng, Wang Quansheng’s boyfriend who passed away due to illness; and Jin Shijia as Yang Hao, Huang Yuxuan’s supervisor during her assignment in Shanghai.

Filming In addition to returning to many of the iconic locations featured in the original series in Tainan, the film also shot at several local landmarks. For example, the station where Mo Junjie bids farewell to Chen Yunru is Linfengying Station.In addition, the film also shot at various locations in Taipei. These include the Cigu Salt Fields Seawall Sunset Trail, used as the seaside location where Li Ziwei and Huang Yuxuan go on a date; Hushan Peak Observation Deck, featured as their New Year’s Eve date location; Riverside Live House (Ximen Red House), which served as the venue for the Wu Bai concert; and Not Just Library, a second-hand record store where Mo Junjie reunites with Chen Yunru.

Music The film soundtrack is released by Rock Records, which has previously collaborated on the series, with the digital version available on major music platforms from 18 January 2023.The physical soundtrack was officially released on 17 March of the same year, with the original singers of the series’ songs lending their voices to the film once again.The theme song, “Remembered”, was written and performed by Sun Shengxi. Nine Chen wrote and performed the insert song “The Girl in My Dreams”. Lead actress Alice Ko also performed the insert song “Obsessed”, for which she personally contributed to the lyrics.The film also retains the original series’ iconic ending theme, “Miss You 3000” by 831, as well as the classic time-travel insert song “Last Dance” by Wu Bai.

Plot Huang Yuxuan and Li Ziwei were having the same dream. In it, they saw a familiar yet distant figure in the pouring rain, and listened to music together in a record shop. Yet when they awoke, although the dream remained vivid, they felt as though they were strangers to one another.In 2009, Huang Yuxuan met Li Ziwei, whom she had seen in her dreams, at the beverage shop where she worked part-time. Ziwei was immediately attracted to Yuxuan, and although they were strangers, they felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity and quickly grew closer.One day, Yuxuan told Ziwei about getting lost in Tainan as a child and being helped by an older boy who guided her home. She later realized that the boy was Ziwei, leading them to discover that their connection had been intertwined long before they met again.They then spent New Year’s Eve together in 2010 and became a couple.As their relationship grew more stable, they began living together in 2014. In 2017, Yuxuan was offered a job transfer to Shanghai. Faced with the prospect of separation, Ziwei told her that he would support whatever decision she made.In a hotel room in Shanghai, Yuxuan lay in bed looking at her chat messages with Ziwei, all of which were marked as unread, whilst his last reply dated back to 2014. As she gazed at an old video of Ziwei, tears streamed down her face. It turned out that Ziwei had passed away in a fall from a building on 10 July 2014, yet all these years she had pretended he was still by her side, carrying on with her life as if nothing had happened.