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09/30/02

Starring: Maggie Gyllenhaal, James Spader, Lesley Ann Warren, Jeremy Davies

Directed by: Steven Shainberg

Frank's film tip: Taking dictation in Steven Shainberg's psychosexual drama "Secretary" is kinky fun and disturbingly frothy

In writer-director Steven Shainberg’s delightfully warped psychosexual dramedy Secretary, there’s a whole new spin on taking dictation and serving your boss dutifully on the job. Shainberg’s showcase is astutely observant in its exploitative and titillating take on unassuming work-related alienation and the kinky sexual politics that consume the completeness of two lost souls. Much like Austrian filmmaker Michael Haneke’s taut and darkly disturbing sexually repressed character study piece The Piano Teacher, Secretary delves into the masochistic mayhem of a complex film heroine who derives her self-satisfying pleasure from the carnal chaos that stimulates their potent wanton existence. Based on a Mary Gaitskill story in the collection Bad Behavior, Shainberg’s big screen adaptation is sometimes shocking and mind-boggling but the film is oddly digestible as an insightful and bizarre love story that reconfirms the notion that there’s a suitable companion out there for somebody. Secretary will invigorate (whether excite or incense) the movie masses with its perversely passionate dysfunctional resonance.

Lee Holloway (Maggie Gyllenhaal) is this film’s tainted Raggedy Ann doll for which most of the action is focused upon. Despite her "the girl next door" looks, Lee is a deeply troubled woman with heavy-handed mental and emotional issues to deal with. Upon her release from a psychiatric institution, Lee finds herself engaged in the same old regrettable habits of self-mutilation. Uncontrollably, she starts to effortlessly inflict all sorts of pain on herself. This individual is in a down spiral quandary and needs rescuing fast!

For the most part, she realizes her dilemma as a drastic change is in order to get her complicated life straightened out. Tired of living under her mother’s (Lesley Ann Warren) restrictive "suburban house of turmoil", Lee must get away and figure out how to support herself on the outside. Of course this means that her first step to independence is obtaining a steady job. And so Lee jets off to train how to type as a bankable skill. Shortly afterwards, she applies for a secretarial position with Florida-based stuffy distant lawyer E. Edward Grey (James Spader). Grey, to say the least, fits his moniker aptly because he’s like an ominous cloud in the sky—looming over his drab office and threatening to rain on everyone’s parade with a moment’s notice. Although he’s young, successful and attractive, Grey has a coldness about him that’s off-putting and quite sinister. He’s a poster boy for repression and there’s no denying this impression when one stares into his steel blank eyes. Hence, the deep-seeded emptiness and unfulfilled void is immediately acknowledged in the callously indifferent person that is the stodgy E. Edward Grey.

Gradually, the tandem of employer Mr. Grey and employee Lee start to click despite the quirky tendencies and other idiosyncrasies that overrule their individuality. Grey is a pesky perfectionist who is fussy about the presentation of paperwork. Lee is quite accommodating of Grey’s nitpicking routine and strangely accepts the inviting submissive role that transpires due to her boss’ relentless anal-retentive mode. Soon, the two discover a blossoming intimacy that takes on a twisted life of its own. With the pent up appetite for distorted naughtiness, Grey willingly untapped an S&M compulsion that wacky worker Lee more than happy is obliged to recognize courtesy of her own off-balanced unsteadiness. As a result, the hypnotic session regarding the off-kilter dirty deeds is conducted religiously that spark the adventurous and gratuitous foreplay between the weirdly lecherous lawyer and the psychotic saucy-minded secretary. In this lewd love bond, both Lee and Grey take advantage of one another by having the other participant succumb to the erotic and creepy stronghold of their peculiar engrossing tactics.

Secretary is a sardonic and grossly captivating movie that isn’t afraid to explore the tenacious force that is the raging libido. Shainberg is masterful in the way he manipulates the sexual tension of his precarious protagonists because he is suggesting that the risky roller-coaster ride of this pair’s union is fueled by the credible concoction of sheer excitement, suppressed angst, insurmountable boredom and a dangerous dose of uncertainty pertaining to low self-esteem matters. This exposition dares to unravel the mesmerizing psychology of taboo human behavior within two people who are tied up (no pun intended) with unresolved emotional baggage. Shainberg, who co-wrote this ferocious fable with Erin Cressida, deserves kudos for exploring the rocky world of sexual mischievous antics as an intriguing tool that both liberates and numbs the perilous ambivalence of these lovers’ inner turmoil.

Spader, no stranger to the nuances of playing a wayward carnally-starved cad (see sex, lies, videotape, White Palace, Dream Lover, Crash), embodies his on screen alter ego with a vigor that’s uniquely funny, profoundly tragic and immensely intoxicating. Gyllenhaal is transfixing and empowering as a tortured temptress who exudes a commanding presence that is both sexy and sympathetic. The leading actors portray this couple as seedy hormonal thrill seekers who take us all on an uninhibited journey that’s haunting, nervously riotous and audaciously revealing.

Secretary packs a provocative punch and its raucous appeal is in the ability to convey an unusual sense of disillusionment with the pressures of opening up to the rigors of life’s monotonous twist and turns. The next time you hire a prototype such as Lee Holloway for your office and expect to play "the Honeybunny Handcuffs Game" by the file cabinet, be prepared to adhere to your sexual harassment-oriented devices. After all, this particular secretary will condone your request for whatever you jot down on your memo pad—a cup of coffee without cream and a leather-clad spanking on your desk as an added bonus during lunchtime hours. Believe me, working 9 to 5 under these sadistic spellbound circumstances take on a whole new meaning in employee fringe benefits. Overall, this devilish display is enough to make any secretarial pool cringe with understandable concern and curiosity.

Frank rates this film: *** stars (out of 4 stars)