Secretary
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Movie Reviews of Secretary
Movie Review: A Powerful Subconscious Mind Poke
Summary: 5 Stars
I read these reviews as opinion pieces on films to get a wider perspective. I could write the whole standard newspaper-style article but that's not really the meat of what I want to talk about, so please excuse me if I skip to the chase here.This movie is about sex, but it's also about repression and shame for having deviant thoughts. These people are interesting not because of the sex (although it was lovingly, beautifully depicted in kinky glory), but because they've broken through and discovered their true selves, and put their shame aside.
They've made a hedonist's journey - from being small and ashamed about the body, to enjoying it fully. I thought it was beautiful - because I think the body's needs are the expression of the true self, and we constantly put up mysterious psychological barriers against them.
First off, what is shame, or modesty? We form a mental 'box' around our sexuality - I'm not sure why. People don't go naked, even in warmer climates, I suppose because sex is not so distracting and we need a mental space in which to conduct more common social interaction - but that's not the same as shame..
Spader's character was obviously very ashamed of his sexual deviance. I don't understand this - my sense is that there's only shame if the behavior is harmful to oneself or others - otherwise it's either a curiousity of a person's neurological development, and is either wonderful or a waste of time. In any case, shame is irrelevant.
Even as I write this I know I couldn't live those words. Shame, especially the sexual type, is hard-wired - just as much as the pecadillo that caused it.
Here we see Spader break out of his 'shame spiral'(!) and open up, beautifully - into a relationship - kinky but real - instead of his previous forays, which I gather were more of the 'kinky and weird' variety. His character was stunted and poorly socialized, probably for all sorts of reasons. His character was forced to change - to heal and become whole.
I thought it was very beautiful to see him open up and trust and allow Maggie into his life. She forced his hand - and that's necessary - I felt it was beautiful that she cared enough to push him, hard, and take him out of his broken existence.
As for Maggie, she was never really repressed or ashamed about sex - she was more of an invisible person on the periphery of others' lives. Here we see her gain enormous power through this newfound Kink, and her love allows her to break through her follower-mentality and become a real person - with a will of her own. They open up together and become new people who can enjoy their bodies and live life to the fullest. I thought this was a terrific movie - a rarity in that it's about sex, and is not aimed at 15-year-olds, and pulls so few punches. Usually only the French produce such films.
Maggie is wry and sharp, and easy on the eyes - I couldn't take mine off her - she's a star from this day forward.
Movie Review: Her Yin and his Yang made them One
Summary: 5 Stars
This movie pleasantly surprised me. I didn't know what to expect.
First of all, I have to say Maggie's acting was superb. The breadth of her character's range from weak to strong, simple to complex, and innocent to sensually manipulative, was amazing, far greater than I was prepared for. She starts out as a sad, sensitive, plain, frumpy girl who uses self-inflicting pain to deal with the psychological pain and stresses in her life. It helps keeps her from numbing out too much, and takes the focus away from the hurt in her heart. She had been doing this for a long time, but an accidental severe injury put her in a mental care institution for a while, when it was thought she had attempted suicide. While there, she was able to find some self-esteem in learning secretarial skills. When released, she sought and found a job as a secretary with a quirky, anal, self-absorbed, demented, semi-genius loner of a lawyer who epitomized the term 'Control Freak'.
As a natural submissive, Lee fought harder to please each time she was debased and scolded over some small error she had done. Soon, it became a dance between she and her boss, with each of them creating excuses for him to discipline her. As the relationship developed, so did Lee, becoming stronger as a person, and coming out of the shell where she had hidden her entire life. Although her boss was the dominant one, punishing her in erotic fashion, it was she who controlled the pace and action of the relationship.
There's a moderate amount of self-hatred on the part of her boss because of his behavior and outlook on life. That prevents him from feeling good about where the relationship has gone.
When her boss understood he had lost control of their interactions and relationship, he fires her. This leads to a showdown, with her boss making extreme demands in order to drive her away. Yet, Lee meets him head on, doing everything that was demanded of her, pushing herself even beyond her physical limits, to demonstrate both her love, and strength of the bond between the two of them. That same intense bond that her boss was denying to both of them.
A crazy, erotic love story, with a breakout performance in a very unconventional role by a stunningly attractive actress I had never seen.
Can't say I was all that impressed with Spader's roll, but it worked well in conjunction with her work.
I found the message very appealing, that there's a chance for each one of us to find someone just right, no matter how different, kinky or weird we may be.
I recommend it highly for those who are comfortable with domination/submission. The story and acting performances were both delicate and powerful.
Movie Review: Pro-sex feminism has three cheers for this stunning film
Summary: 5 Stars
The personal and political comes together in a mesh of beauty, tenderness, honesty and desire in this stunner of a film. Honest love stories, honest stories about anything, are rare hollywood product and this story pulls no punches. Yet, while the basis of the relationship of the two main characters, played by Spader and Gyllenhal, is a half reluctant half exuberant pull towards s/m/b/d, that is not the whole of their relationship. And while their enjoyment and pleasure in these ritualistic, gorgeously shot activities is genuine and intense, they are still a kind of metaphor for the deeper meaning these two characters find in each others company, for the understanding that they engender in each other. THis is not a story about sadomashochism-rather it's a story about a dominant and a submissive who happen to fit each other in almost every other way as well.
And the pro-sex feminist in me thrills at a piece of fiction treating sex and sexuality as a way to empower a woman rather than demean or degrade her. The main theme of Lee's life pre-Mr. Grey is one of being pushed around the emotions she's too sensitive to fully absorb and family members too absorbed to help her. At the beginning of the movie, she is a kind of victim, not of her self-mutilation but of the emotional abuse that is at the root of her self-mutilation. But her relationship with Mr. Grey, even though it's abstract and unusual, allows her to claim her emotions, to choose her life and it's partner without regard to anyone else's emotions or opinions. When Lee tells poor peter close to the end of the movie, "I don't want you" she is actually saying, "I want all of these other things and I will have them" This is a giant step for Lee and one that the viewer feels she would've never made without a few cups of hot chocolate and a few well placed spankings. Mr Grey has manpiulated Lee in the context of their dominant/submissive relationship, but her ability to own these moments between them have given her immeasurable confidence and joy. (and yes, we kind of feel sorry for peter, but mostly because he hasn't found anything akin to Lee's strength in the post break-down world)
When Lee places the certain object on the end of bed near the closing moments of the movie, it is a symbol of the permanance, the indestructible quality of their love. And in the actual closing moment, when Lee faces the camera and her gaze emits such power and grace and happiness she is daring anyone to tell her that she's wrong while also insinuating that such judgements are meaningless to her. She is claming her own version of satisfaction and there is nothing more feminist than that. ;)
Movie Review: Pleasure and Pain
Summary: 5 Stars
Sexuality has forever played a tremendous role in our storytelling. In recent years, those roles and themes have become more visible, controversial and erotic. Where censorship strives to dismiss controversy, "Secretary" embraces it and offers us an unforgetable tour of the taboo."Secretary" forces us to look outside of the box - and see through the eyes of Lee Holloway (Maggie Gyllenhaal). Lee is of a unique breed, who gets pleasure from pain and finds security out of being submissive. Lee returns home for her sister's wedding after having spent time in a mental patient facility. We are immediately find out she is a cutter and inflicts wounds of all sorts for a sense of relief. Determined to not spend all her time at home with her dysfunctional family, she gets a job working as a secretary in a law office for E. Edward Grey (James Spader). Grey is an abrasive anal-retentive man who apparently runs through secretaries every few months or so. We soon witness his growing infactuations with Lee and through his mood swings and psuedo-violent behaviors, a strange sort of romance develops between them. He begins to abuse her and as these habits become more severe, she looks for more ways to receive abuse. Lee must then balance her two seperate lives, living with her family/exploring a relationship with a childhood boyfriend and the taboo S&M relationship she carries with her employer. Both worlds,of course, interfere with each other, ultimately ending with a final confrontation and a surprise ending.
Maggie Gyllenhaal has proven herself to be a superb actress. Her character seems so real in all her actions - there is nothing campy about her subtle nature and her excitement's crescendos. Though her role is small in this feature, Leslie Ann Warren lends her usual charismatic prescence as Lee's over protective suburban mother. James Spader is surprisingly cold and calculated in all of his antics. Each expression on his face becomes immaculately complex, as to which we must question what is going through his head as he spanks his "helpless" employee leaning over his desk.
One must remember that this movie relys on exposing the dark side of sexuality. Full female nudity, masturbation and sex is blunty displayed in a few scenes. What makes this art instead of smut is the underlying emotional states of the characters. One can only hope to find some understanding of their psychology and desires. Because of how controversial the subject matter is, this movie is not for everyone. And I think that might be a reason I love it so much!
Movie Review: This movie was fantastic...kinky, quirky and fun!!!
Summary: 5 Stars
As a feminist, the themes presented in this film were not my cup of tea...so I feel kind of awkward and embarrassed saying that I really enjoyed SECRETARY. I won't go into detail about plot and such, because it has all been said in previous reviews, but I will share some of my personal opinions.
This movie is very disturbing, but the two leading players are fascinating to watch. I am a huge fan of James Spader, and he just shines in these kind of "twisted" roles. He is definitely one of the world's greatest actors and this is one of his best performances. (Even though all of his performances are top-notch)! And Maggie Gyllenhaal is absolutely fantastic as well! She is obviously a very talented actress with a lot of guts. I give her a lot of credit for taking a role that many women wouldn't touch. The only real qualm I have with this film is that it could have gone into a little more detail about Mr. Grey's past and why he behaves the way he does. It didn't provide enough information about his character's previous exploits.
Another thing about this film that makes it unique is the way that it is able to be flat-out sexy without a lot of actual sex. The tensions between the two characters are so complex and I was always wondering what they would be feeling (and doing!) next. Seriously, the sexual tension in several of the scenes is so thick that you can cut it with a knife (this is especially true with the spanking scene). And you just gotta love those red Sharpies! Also, the musical score is terrific and highly seductive.
Overall, this is a great film and it was interesting to see a different kind of love lifestyle (although it is one that I would never pursue myself)! The ending is touching and it was good to see how these two people finally came together and shared some gentle, caring and tender moments. I am not a big fan of nudity in movies, but the scenes in this film were done in an artistic, respectful and beautiful way.
I have watched this movie several times already, but nothing compares to the experience of seeing it for the very first time. Initially, I found this film to be shocking and even mildly disgusting. After thinking about it for a little while, however, I grew to realize what a fine independent picture SECRETARY is...and now I love it! I highly recommend this film, but not for individuals who are closed-minded about this kind of subject matter. For mature, open-minded viewers, this movie is a must!