Secretary


1/4

Starring: James Spader, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Jeremy Davies

Rated R Strong Sexuality, Some Nudity, Depiction of Behavioral Disorders and Language

“Secretary” is one of those annoying indie flicks where the director is so obsessed with trying to be hip and deep to impress critics that he forgets why he is making the movie in the first place: to tell a story.  The story, a sado-masochistic romance, has promise, but director Steven Shainberg drains every last bit of life and energy from the screen.

Lee Holloway (Gyllenhaal) is a young woman who has just been released from a mental hospital for a suicide attempt (that was really an episode of self-mutilation gone wrong).  She gets a job with a lawyer named E. Edward Grey (Spader).  But their professional relationship ventures beyond platonic when the sexually sadistic lawyer realizes that his new secretary is a masochist.

“Secretary” is a bad movie of the worst kind.  It’s slow moving, pretentious, and worst of all, boring.  I didn’t care about anyone in this film, and I certainly couldn’t care less about whether Lee and Edward ended up together (although, true to Hollywood form, the answer is obvious).  Despite director Steven Shainberg’s attempts to flesh out Lee and Edward, they remain strictly two-dimensional.   The energy level isn’t the only problem with this film.  The film is way too long; whenever Shainberg gets a new idea, he spends five minutes repeating it just to make sure we get it.

Nothing irritates me more than when a director keeps the energy level on mute.  It serves no purpose and only hurts the film.  There’s a difference between subtlety and lifelessness, and not only does Shainberg not know the difference, he doesn’t realize that his film needs energy to work.

The only good thing about this film is Maggie Gyllenhaal.  She gives a delightful, fully realized portrayal of the mentally ill Lee, but there’s only so much she can do before the film becomes deadly dull.  James Spader is horrible as Edward.  He speaks so quietly and mumbles everything.  Spader can act, which is why I lay the blame at Shainberg’s feet.

To be fair, Shainberg treats these characters with dignity.  He doesn’t go the Wes Anderson route and make fun of them.  Although this in no way saves the film, at least we can be thankful for small favors.

It is so ironic that this film is about sado-masochism.  This film is made by a sadist and is for masochists only.

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