I was channel surfing this morning when I saw 香江花月夜 showing on channel 62. I thought this is a very nice movie with a feel good plot and nice soundtracks. Strangely, it was never a hit.

The story started with a out-of-favour Hong Kong singer, Johnny in the 70s. At that time, there is no canto pop. Cantonese songs are all operas. Their pop groups sings English songs. Johnny believes in Cantonese pop songs, but shares his views. Until Samuel Hui becomes a best seller when he put Cantonese lyrics in English songs, and canto pop pick up from there.

Johnny now works in 香江夜总会, let's call it XJ night club. When we Singaporeans talk about night club, sleazy sex joints comes to mind. It's actually a pub with a live band and various performers. Something like a indoor 7-month getai on a permanent basis. Something like what Dragonfly of St James Power Station.

Anyway, back to our story, Johnny adopted 2 orphans and trains them to be singers. 高志 is a bright kid with a smooth mouth and is a favorite with the adults. 家颖 is a quiet, steadfast boy. He wears thick plastic black rimmed glasses. He is the nerdy forgettable kind of guy with low self-esteem. They formed a 2-man band called Marbles and performed in XJ, Johnny tried very hard to get them recording contracts.

While growing up, 高志 and 家颖 are good friends with the boss's daughter, 阿怡. She later went overseas for studies, but she came back to take over the running of XJ when her dad died. 家颖 fell in love with her, and is working on writing a song for her. At the same time she is knitting a jacket, seemingly for Johnny. Sometimes, she'll get 家颖 to help her with it. One such time, she took off his glasses and say he look better without them. When he says that everything is blur, she replied, "以后，我就是你迷路的方向". And of course, we'll find out soon after that the sweater is meant for 家颖.

Unfortunately, 家颖 is allergic to wool and he gets very uncomfortable while wearing wool. And when he finds out that 高志 is interested as well, his inferiority complex tells him to give the jacket to 高志. He even gave the song he wrote for her to 高志. The lyrics goes like this

只爱你
长夜里剩我独对,又是无尽空虚
心里此际暗淌泪,只怕增添你的困累.

长夜里剩我独唱,这未完成的歌
手里的结它低和,高唱生命的交错.

Chorus:
想你知,心里有些感觉
是多么真挚,但不懂怎说出口

想你知,此生可碰上(遇上)
从未去妄想,能梦见已足够.

Sure enough, armed with the song, 高志 wins the girl's heart. The 2 of them even got popular with the song. Unfortunately, success has gotten to 高志's head. He's becoming very conceited and becomes a womanizer. Many a times, 家颖 have to help get out of sticky situations when they come looking for him at XJ and 阿怡 is around. Strangely, 阿怡 seems to be aware of this as she say to 高志, "你果然是个会唱，会演，会编，会导，4凄艺人".

And, on one occasion, 阿怡 asked 家颖 to teach her 1 musical instrument so that she play together with 高志. 家颖 told her that 阿志 can't play any instruments anyway. He can only sing. And 阿怡 replies with 2 modified lines of 只爱你.
手里的结它低和
高志家颖你们有没搞错.

As 高志 gone from bad to worse, 家颖 decides to break up their partnership. Johnny is sad by 高志's betrayal, and is gratified that 家颖 is still loyal to him. He decides to organize a breaking up concert for them and to train 家颖 up to be a outstanding singer.

In the concert, the last song they sang is 只爱你. Before they they started singing, 家颖 took off his jacket showing the woolen jacket underneath. He said that for a long time, he had not dared to put on this woolen jacket as he is afraid of the pain it might cause him. But when he sees the jacket taken by somebody else, it pained him even more. He decided that he do not wants to be afraid anymore.

During the song, 高志 tried to grab the limelight. However, when they sang to the end of the chorus, 家颖 sang the unfinished part , the bridge. The lyrics is like this:
你是我,迷路里的方向
此身躯可替你受伤,
还愿意乐意为你做世上一切事
心里感激你但偏偏你未知.

你是我,能面对的真相
笑声于心里再回响,
唯独最害怕望见是你亮晶的眼泪
想你一生快乐想给我幸福

在我心深处. Wo...只爱你

And the crowd breaks up in applause. The fans are now going crazy of 家颖 when they were going crazy over 高志 a moment ago.