Exploring
the kinky realm of bondage and sadomasochism, Steven Shainberg’s Secretary
is not by any means an average love-story, and that isn't because it
substitutes ass-spankings for automatic sex. While ultimately about love and
male-female compatibility, the film is more bizarre-o David Lynch than perky Meg
Ryan. Or better yet, Secretary can be considered a cross between the two
disparate individuals. Yes, there are graphic sexual sequences that you’d
likely see on late-night Cinemax, but they’re treated with the tender
sweetness of, say, Sleepless in Seattle. And even without their
incontrollable fetishes, the characters are so offbeat and weird they would fit
perfectly into Mullholand Drive.
Feature
films dealing with sadomasochism usually treat the subject in a facetious,
cartoon-like manner. The few that do treat it with some maturity, like Body
of Evidence starring the whip/leather advocating Madonna, aren’t nearly as
playful as Shainberg’s latest; which opens in a tracking shot that follows the
gagged title character as she performs office duties with arms bound above her
head.
Maggie
Gyllenhaal plays Lee Holloway, the meek masochist who hides her arsenal of
blades and sharp utensils in a pink pouch; usually reserved for children’s
Barbie accessories. Recently released from a mental institution, Lee isn’t all
that thrilled being back home with her alcoholic father and dimwitted mom. She
opens her pink blade-kit when the pressure of domestic violence gets too thick,
finding relief through pain. But when Lee gets a secretarial job, her first
gainful employment, for shy lawyer E. Edward Grey (James Spader), the
relationship between employer and employee develops new meaning.
Most
of the film’s fun stems from the characters’ spontaneity, never
letting us know how they’ll react to any given situation. And with Lee as the
office typist/receptionist, Mr. Grey has a wide array of reactions whenever
she screws up. At first Mr. Grey hands Lee absurd tasks, such as retrieving
crumpled memos from garbage dispensers, but once he sees her willingness to
comply with any given order, due to inexperience, he takes advantage and
fulfills some personal fantasies.
Extreme feminists might consider the
scenes of forced sadomasochism as vilely sexist, since in real life the employer
would immediately be sued for sexual harassment, but Lee enjoys the spankings
and reciprocates her boss’ sexual urges. She enjoys being dominated just as
Mr. Grey enjoys dominating. And that is evident in Lee’s unhappy relationship
with her inexperienced would-be boyfriend (Jeremy Davies), who engages only in
missionary positions…and only lasts 10-seconds during interaction.
When movies are this brazen and unusual, it’s difficult to point out flaws. Granted, Secretary has some, including underdeveloped subplots that come and go as they please, but overall there are plenty of fun rarities that are difficult to spot in theatres nowadays. We also get the bold performances from Spader and, more notably, Gyllenhaal; an actress who fully understands her character. So while it’s difficult to ignore the film’s faults, pointing them out is even harder. -Shaun Sages
GRADE: B
-Copyright 2002 by
Shaun
Sages