“Five teenagers trapped in the giant basement of the hotel where The Beatles are staying. With no way up and no way out, they settle in for the night and slowly, unwittingly begin to reveal their deepest secrets, their anxieties, their joys, their fears. It is the best of times, it is the worst of times - the teenage years. When The Beatles burst onto the world over 25 years ago, millions of teenagers like these saw their chance for rebellion...and they took it. They talk about love, sex, school, parents, teachers, families, enemies - all the madness and joy of being young. Five teenagers in search of an identity, on the threshold of a new age” - (From Secrets publicity leaflet)
“The film features some of the most famous music ever written - producer Michael Pattinson secured the rights to use four original versions of Beatles songs - Love Me Do, I saw Her Standing There, Do You Want To Know a Secret, and Twist and Shout. Nostalgia is a strong part of the film’s appeal, Pattinson says. ‘The teenagers in this film show us how the world was then and how they felt on the eve of perhaps the greatest social revolution of all time. The film is very optimistic, filled with hope, energy and dreams - the sort of dreams that started a revolution and changed the world” - (“Beatles era Secrets film shot at Avalon”, The Evening Post, November 3, 1993)
“Because the film is schematic with a point of discovery to be made from each confrontation and admission, the narrative flow is theatrical rather than cinematic and several scenes, like the one where they all decide at the same time they need to use the toilet, have a plodding ‘set piece’ choreography. The talented young cast give energetic performances but are confined by the two-dimensionality of their characters. The lighting and cinematography are excellent and archival footage of Beatles’ Melbourne visit is well integrated” - (Helen Martin & Sam Edwards, New Zealand Film 1912-1996, Auckland: Oxford University Press, 1997, pg.174)