- Format: NTSC
- Release Date: Jun 7 2005
- Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (160 customer reviews)
- ASIN: B00008DYQA
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #20,022 in DVD (See Top 100 in DVD)
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Product Description
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Steven Shainberg explore la relation plus que particulière qu’entretiennent un patron et sa secrétaire dans Secretary, second long métrage audacieux qui a obtenu le prix spécial du jury pour son originalité au Festival des films indépendants de Sundance.
Après quelques années d’internement dans un hôpital psychiatrique, la jeune Lee Holloway cherche un emploi. Même si elle rêve toujours d’orchidées roses et de dauphins, elle n’aurait jamais cru que ses pulsions sadomasochistes seraient son atout principal pour convaincre M. Grey, un avocat, de l’engager. Comment alors éviter que le jeu n’aille trop loin ?
Si Steven Shainberg est habile à une chose, c’est bien à faire naître le malaise. En filmant cette Secretary comme une série B romantique ordinaire, mais en y injectant une bonne dose de déviance, il crée un décalage fort original et dérangeant. James Spader et Maggie Gyllenhaal, dont le jeu frôle la folie, sont les interprètes convaincants de cette fable sadomasochiste qui révèle les liens secrets entre amour, sexe et pouvoir. La fin, un peu facile, aurait sans doute pu être plus audacieuse pour rester dans le ton du film. Reste que Secretary ose regarder, avec beaucoup de franchise et d’humour, derrière la porte de la sexualité humaine. --Helen Faradji
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Most helpful customer reviews
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
absolutely delightful film,
By Yun Jung Kim (Seoul, South Korea) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Secretary (DVD)
This film could have been third class perverted semi-porn movie. But the director Steven Shainber did great job in turning a bit perverted material-sadism and masochism-into absolutely funny and cute love story. Although the movie deals with somewhat irregular sexual issues, it is never erotic or disgusting. The reason, I suppose, is truthfulness and purity of the characters.Maggie Gyllenhaal(Lee) did stunning work in playing a very pure, yet unconventional, female secretary. Lee looks somewhat dumb and weak to her desire, but at least she is uncontaminated by the outside world and true to her feelings. The way she tries to seduce James Spader is quite adorable. James Spader also proved that he is a great actor. Mr. Gray (Spader) is slightly deviated from the normal person, but still he is greatly attractive man. How he heals the wounds of Lee and how he resists her seduction induces laughter from the audiences. This film is never typical and never normal, yet it shows the true feelings of the human beings. This film depicts physical attraction, yet it show what real love is. I absolutely recommend this film to everybody and I guarantee that anyone who sees this film will like it.
5 of 6 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Pleasure and Pain,
This review is from: Secretary (DVD)
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!
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Sexy, sweet, funny, twisted (in a good way),
By "lilylaamor" (Washington, D.C.) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Secretary (DVD)
I saw this film not knowing anything about it, and that element of surprize helped entirely because if you're looking for a film that's about gritty hardcore s+m, this isn't it. But if you're looking for one with heart, humor, and beautiful-strangeness, then this is a wonderful movie to see. I loved the ending, it is beautiful and unforgettably visual. It's my favourite James Spader film to date, I think it fits him perfectly. And Maggie Gyllenhaal shows she is a talented, brave actress who's not afraid of taking an unusual role. The camera work is beautiful, suspenseful, dramatic, sensual... oh i can't say enough good things about this film, there is not another like it!
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