Review of Secretary (2002) by Katrina L — 13 Jan 2010

So basically, I was channel surfing for some background noise while hanging around on the computer, and I happened to see this film on the guide. I saw James Spader was in the cast, and being a fan of his I thought I would check it out. On the surface this movie for some may come across as nothing more than one of the ultimate sexual fantasies in life in a soft core porn type chick flick, but for those who like to dig a little deeper and especially those who have any interest or experience with BDSM there is much going on in this movie.

I thought Maggie Gyllenhaal gave an outstanding performance, and I felt her growing throughout, seeing moments and mannerisms and characteristics that were eerie in how much I related. It was easy to see how she felt, her emotions in her expressions and body language like a picture book. James Spader too, of course, was awesome though this character was really nothing out of the norm of strange, eccentric roles he usually has. I thought the on screen chemistry between the two was brilliant, and this movie is absolutely hands down sexy as hell.

I enjoyed the way their relationship grew slowly, ever so painfully slow. There were moments where I was literally frustrated within, feeling as tortured as "Lee" was with every meeting of their eyes and thing she did to please him. This movie contains a beautifully erotic love story, proving that love is possible anywhere with anyone. It also shows us that love is something different to us all, but it doesn't make it less intense or important. "Lee" and "E. Edward Grey" were both struggling in one way or another, and found in each other the cure. When you think about it, that's really no different than a lot of relationships. This movie is so deep in a lot of ways, for example I could explore the feelings I had about retro man role/woman role ways of thinking, the true meaning of a BDSM relationship and how in little ways every day whether people realize it or not they are engaging in it somehow...

However, I will keep myself from rambling on and just say that I was very moved by this movie and would definitely watch it again. I went through a mixture of emotions and at the end felt completely satisfied as though I had gotten exactly what I wanted. The director of this movie, also directed Fur: An Imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus which I had the pleasure of watching a few weeks ago. Unfortunately I only caught half of that movie, and I truly enjoyed and loved what I saw so I have plans of re-watching the entire thing and doing a blog on that as well. Though movies like these may not be Box Office smashes and what's on the "popular list", they are truly remarkable and I encourage people to think outside the box and watch something they wouldn't normally. You never know how it may change you!