To say that mainstream American cinema has never taken a particularly sympathetic view of sexual fetishes is kind of like saying that filmmakers Spike Lee, Michael Moore and Rob Reiner have never given serious consideration to running for the Republican Party. It’s an understatement. So, when the Motion Picture Association of America slaps a warning on Secretary saying that part of the reason for its R rating is the film’s “depiction of behavioural disorders,” we’re left to wonder whether it’s referring to the protagonist’s penchant – early in the film – for cutting, burning or otherwise causing herself physical injury (quite likely), her later participation in a safe but kinky sexual relationship with her boss that involves bondage, spanking and dominant/ submissive behaviours (almost certainly), or her father’s debilitating alcoholism (not likely at all).
While it’s not going to convince those with a socially conservative bent that bondage and sado-masochism are anything but evidence of behavioural disorder, Secretary provides a disarmingly sweet and matter-of-fact portrayal of how moving beyond shame over venturing into taboo sexual territory can liberate a person and allow them to live healthier, not to mention happier.
The film follows Lee Holloway (Maggie Gyllenhaal bursts into prominence in this role), a young woman with mental health issues – not to mention a highly dysfunctional family. Out of mental hospital, she’s ready to venture out into the world of work, but she still has trouble coping with her unhealthy domestic scene – principally a father who becomes drunk regularly and abusive when this is pointed out to him. Lee copes by taking a sharp object or a hot kettle to her leg.
When she finds a job as secretary to a young lawyer (James Spader), the sexually inexperienced Lee soon learns that her boss has a quirk or two of his own. Generally low-key and quiet, but good-natured, he seems to get a kick out of bossing her around. A smack or two on the bum for leaving a typo in a letter seems even more fun, and before you know it, the two are surreptitiously involved in a decidedly non-mainstream flirtation. The struggles of the two to reconcile what they’re doing with all that is right and acceptable in society makes for a fascinating, sometimes heartbreaking and often humorous series of events.
Secretary is unabashedly eccentric, and it certainly challenges mainstream views of love, sex and healthy behaviour. By juxtaposing clearly self-destructive behaviours with kinky but essentially harmless ones, viewers are forced to reconsider what’s okay and what isn’t. Director Steven Shainberg, whose two previous credits attracted impressive cast lists but little mainstream attention, strikes a fine balance here between the troubling and the fun. He’s aided by strong lead performances by Gyllenhaal and Spader, with the former displaying a slightly confused loveable nature and the latter seeming to be just barely containing volcanic emotions. The supporting players aren’t nearly as vital to the film’s success, although Lesley Ann Warren, whose twitchy onscreen presence has always struck me as being just a step or two away from requiring institutionalization, has finally found a role – as Lee’s eccentric mother – to which she is ideally suited.
Provocative, funny and one of the more offbeat love stories you’re ever going to see, Secretary is an unusual little gem of a film that does what art is supposed to do – provoke us to look a bit more closely at what we might initially judge without thought. It’s a solid effort that will certainly have me looking closely at Shainberg’s next film.
