rev_f_secretary

SECRETARY
maggie gyllenhaal / james spader

as reviewed by Jack Crompton at Amazon.com, November 21, 2006

3 peas...

‘Secretary’ is a excellent character study. The film is quite erotic, although very little actual sex is shown. It is potent in anticipation and non-verbal communication. It’s power lies in what is NOT said. It's about need. As several other reviewers have brought out here, there's a lot going on here besides titillation. The beauty of the film is in it's subtlety and the depth of the characters, which the director takes time to develop.

Both Earl Edward Gray (James Spader) and Lee (Maggie Gyllenhaal) are compatible complements in this story, which really is a story about 'complements'. It's about finding that balance in the energy between two people that continually magnetizes them to each other. There is a silent, powerful unspoken attraction between the two characters that transcends their established professional roles. The skill in the film making is evident in that the viewer can really 'sense' this dynamic building throughout the film if one possesses any sensitivity and objectivity at all. There is so much here that is communicated just with the look in the eyes. There is so much that is unspoken, yet if you pay attention, you know what is going on. I think it's great film-making.

In an age when we are innundated with quick, flash images every other second, sensational sex and violence for it's own sake, and a total lack of character development, I find it refreshing to see a movie like this that moves slowly on purpose to develop the psyche of the characters, and Secretary does that superbly. In the end, Secretary is a love story, allbeit an ‘unconventional’ one. It is a story of fulfilled and satisfied needs on both ends of the equation that results in mutual healing. And really, isn't that what any successful relationship is really about?

Don’t miss this one. And don’t be surprised at how very stimulated you feel by the end of the movie. The look in Lee's (Maggie Gyllenhaal) face in the last frame of the film says it all and is alone worth the price of admission.

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