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Secretary
The protagonist in "Secretary," Lee (played by Maggie Gyllenhaal), goes from recently having been released from a mental institution, to learning how to type, to a job with an odd, controlling lawyer, to being his mistress of pain, to becoming his happy, horny lover at the end. It is quite a bizarre and sometimes erotic ride through this "R-rated" film. James Spader plays the part of the attorney (E. Edward Grey), and he leads this naive but attractive woman -- who is on her very first job -- through some cruel, creepy scenes.
Referring to this picture as a romantic comedy would be a stretch. On the face of it, it's about a woman struggling to become a normal working woman who is into cutting herself on a regular basis -- until her lawyer boss provides hard spanking as a substitute for the pain from cutting her legs. This is more of a psychological story than a romantic story, albeit there is romance at the end of the film.
The frequent flashbacks and vivid imaginary scenes cause a viewer to wonder -- is this scene real or is it a sly interjection of surrealism courtesy of director Steven Shainberg? There is plenty of...
The lawyer is ultra picky about her clothes, her hair, the fact that she sniffles -- but its only because the audience comes to realize he likes her and is attracted to her but he has his own hang-ups. He has obviously been through a number of secretaries; the sign on his front gate advertising a job for a secretary is permanent.
Although the theme running through much of the film is sadomasochism, and there are a few nude scenes and hard spanking, the bondage is nowhere near what film goers experience in "Fifty Shades of Grey."
Spader's character Grey confuses Lee; just when Lee is getting into being submissive and letting her lawyer boss spank her and otherwise dominate her, Grey pulls back. Lee misses his orneriness and his obsessive spankings, and she begins to masturbate while fanaticizing about Grey. Oddly, one day Grey orders Lee to bend over the desk as he often has and she is thrilled because it's been quite a long time since his last spanking. However, this time he asks her to pull down her pantyhose. She is curiously delighted, thinking he is finally going…
Works Cited
IMBD. (2002). Secretary. Steven Shainberg, Director. From the short story by Mary Gaitskill,
"Bad Behavior." Screenplay by Erin Cressida Wilson. Retrieved March 14, 2015, from http://www.imbd.com.
Secretary. (2002). Directed by Steven Shainberg. Distributed by Lionsgate Films.
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