Works because of a fine screenplay by Erin Cressida Wilson and because these two characters are so weirdly likable and wonderfully portrayed by Spader and Gyllenhaal.
Comment
10/21/02
Secretary (2002)
74
%
Tomatometer
How does the Tomatometer work 
Reviews Counted:138
Fresh:102
Rotten:36
Average Rating:6.7/10
Consensus: Maggie Gyllenhaal impresses in this romantic comedy with a kinky twist.
Runtime: 1 hr 51 mins
Genre: Comedies
US Box Office: $3,806,471
Synopsis: With sheer originality and bold,unflinching humor, Secretary embraces a most unconventional relationship and lays open the notion that love doesn't always occur in the traditional fashion. Lee... [More]
Starring: Maggie Gyllenhaal, James Spader, Jeremy Davies, Lesley Ann Warren
Director: Steven Shainberg
Reviews for Secretary
61 - 80 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
Movies Secretary Director: Steven Shainberg Starring: Lesley Ann Warren, James Spader, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Jeremy Davies (R, 104 min.) Secretary is a testament to the importance of tonality in telling a story.
10/20/02
Obviously, Secretary isn't for everyone. But if you're willing to take a chance, you might be surprised to find you've enjoyed it.
10/18/02
Equal opportunity exploitation.
10/18/02
Gyllenhaal's deep yearning buttresses the film's swiss-cheese argument that pain opens the door to real feeling, and that Lee and Edward are sharing a love that's right for them.
10/17/02
Despite its flaws, Secretary stays in your head and makes you question your own firmly held positions.
10/17/02
Whether it shocks or disturbs or amuses, Secretary deserves applause for doing something most movies avoid these days.
10/15/02
it sounds sick and twisted, but the miracle of Shainberg's film is that it truly is romance
10/12/02
A picture with heart. You shouldn't leave feeling soiled or bruised. Just touched.
10/11/02
Top CriticA movie about kinks shouldn't be this ponderous or slow.
10/11/02
Worth checking out -- if you get can get past the material -- simply for being so different and intriguing.
10/10/02
Self-serious and ultimately pedestrian satire.
10/10/02
Top CriticShainberg weaves a carefully balanced scenario that is controlled by neither character, is weirdly sympathetic to both and manages to be tender and darkly comic.
10/10/02
By turns mordantly funny, startling, and erotic, it's a spicy little cocktail surprise, with fine acting by Spader and a phenomenal breakthrough performance by Maggie Gyllenhaal.
10/08/02
I have seen the future and her name is Maggie Gyllenhaal.
10/07/02
…it wasn’t the subject matter that ultimately defeated the film…It was the unfulfilling, incongruous, "wait a second, did I miss something?" ending.
10/06/02
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.
10/06/02
The more I thought about it, the more I liked it.
10/04/02
Secretary isn’t a movie about humiliation or depravity at all; it’s a dizzy fairytale about two people who help each other to stop feeling ashamed of the very things that give them pleasure.
10/03/02
Click to read the article
10/02/02
Top CriticLatest News for Secretary
July 17, 2008:
Maggie Gyllenhaal Talks The Dark Knight 
It's a far cry from indie fare like Secretary or Sherrybaby, but for Maggie Gyllenhaal, taking on the role of Rachel Dawes in The Dark Knight was just the logical next step in... More...
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