Review of Secretary (2002) by Sarah E — 10 Jul 2010

To paraphrase the Duracell battery commercial: whether you're planning on getting married and having children or getting yourself whipped, bound, and spanked, love, it seems, just has to work. So it is for Maggie Gyllenhaal's Lee in the movie Secretary, who finds herself smitten with her boss, lawyer E. Edward Gray (James Spader), due to his domineering and abusive behaviour. But this isn't one of those morally reprehensible love stories where men insist that physical abuse is for the woman's benefit; oh, no - Gray himself recognizes that his relationship with Lee (which consists of bondage and spanking) is abnormal and even unhealthy. But Lee finds herself enjoying his ministrations and flourishes under his dominance, because through being controlled she is able to be in control of her own life.

Secretary is not about titillating its audience with odd images of sexual play. It is also not about witnessing the destruction of Lee's character at the hands of an abusive male. Instead, Lee is protrayed as a smart young woman, one who, upon learning the rules of the games with her boss, begins to dominate him as a submissive subject. The result is a very smart, deeply heartwarming love story because of its eccentricities rather than in spite of them. Lee manages to find love that works for her, and really, isn't that the important thing?