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Secretary

  • 20022002
  • RR
  • 1h 47m
IMDb RATING
6.9/10
93K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
839
97
Maggie Gyllenhaal in Secretary (2002)
Home Video Trailer from Lionsgate
Play trailer0:59
2 Videos
99+ Photos
ComedyDramaRomance
A young woman, recently released from a mental hospital, gets a job as a secretary to a demanding lawyer, where their employer-employee relationship turns into a sexual, sadomasochistic one.A young woman, recently released from a mental hospital, gets a job as a secretary to a demanding lawyer, where their employer-employee relationship turns into a sexual, sadomasochistic one.A young woman, recently released from a mental hospital, gets a job as a secretary to a demanding lawyer, where their employer-employee relationship turns into a sexual, sadomasochistic one.
IMDb RATING
6.9/10
93K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
839
97
    • Steven Shainberg
    • Erin Cressida Wilson(screenplay)
    • Mary Gaitskill(short story)
    • Steven Shainberg(story adaptation)
  • Stars
    • James Spader
    • Maggie Gyllenhaal
    • Jeremy Davies
    • Steven Shainberg
    • Erin Cressida Wilson(screenplay)
    • Mary Gaitskill(short story)
    • Steven Shainberg(story adaptation)
  • Stars
    • James Spader
    • Maggie Gyllenhaal
    • Jeremy Davies
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 442User reviews
    • 171Critic reviews
    • 63Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards

    Videos2

    Secretary
    Trailer 0:59
    Watch Secretary
    Secretary
    Trailer 2:18
    Watch Secretary

    Photos140

    James Spader and Maggie Gyllenhaal in Secretary (2002)
    Maggie Gyllenhaal in Secretary (2002)
    James Spader and Maggie Gyllenhaal in Secretary (2002)
    Maggie Gyllenhaal in Secretary (2002)
    James Spader, Maggie Gyllenhaal, and Steven Shainberg in Secretary (2002)
    Jake Gyllenhaal and Maggie Gyllenhaal at an event for Secretary (2002)
    James Spader at an event for Secretary (2002)
    James Spader at an event for Secretary (2002)
    Jake Gyllenhaal, Maggie Gyllenhaal, and Steven Shainberg at an event for Secretary (2002)
    Jake Gyllenhaal and Maggie Gyllenhaal at an event for Secretary (2002)
    Maggie Gyllenhaal at an event for Secretary (2002)
    Maggie Gyllenhaal at an event for Secretary (2002)

    Top cast

    Edit
    James Spader
    James Spader
    • Mr. Grey
    Maggie Gyllenhaal
    Maggie Gyllenhaal
    • Lee Holloway
    Jeremy Davies
    Jeremy Davies
    • Peter
    Lesley Ann Warren
    Lesley Ann Warren
    • Joan Holloway
    Stephen McHattie
    Stephen McHattie
    • Burt Holloway
    Patrick Bauchau
    Patrick Bauchau
    • Dr. Twardon
    Jessica Tuck
    Jessica Tuck
    • Tricia O'Connor
    Oz Perkins
    Oz Perkins
    • Jonathan
    Amy Locane
    Amy Locane
    • Lee's Sister
    Mary Joy
    Mary Joy
    • Sylvia
    Michael Mantell
    Michael Mantell
    • Stewart
    Lily Knight
    Lily Knight
    • Paralegal
    Sabrina Grdevich
    Sabrina Grdevich
    • Allison
    Lacey Kohl
    • Louisa
    Julene Renee
    Julene Renee
    • Jessica
    Lauren Cohn
    Lauren Cohn
    • First Secretary
    Ezra Buzzington
    Ezra Buzzington
    • Typing Teacher
    Kyle Colerider-Krugh
    Kyle Colerider-Krugh
    • Mr. Garvey
      • Steven Shainberg
      • Erin Cressida Wilson(screenplay) (story adaptation)
      • Mary Gaitskill(short story)
      • Steven Shainberg(story adaptation)
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      In a 2018 interview Maggie Gyllenhaal called her role in Secretary "the first time that I was given a role where I could express something about myself," describing taking the role of Lee as an opportunity to "explore something that's on the edge of what I know about myself but with the protection of fiction." She also gave director Steven Shainberg a lot of credit for his collaborative approach, describing him as "interested in me as an artist, was interested in what I was offering, and the way that shifted the story, as opposed to whatever he had imagined before I got there."
    • Goofs
      All the cars in the film have Florida license plates on the front of the car. Florida only has back plates.
    • Quotes

      [Mr. Grey asks Lee why she cuts herself]

      E. Edward Grey: Why do you cut yourself, Lee?

      Lee: I don't know.

      E. Edward Grey: Is it that sometimes the pain inside has to come to the surface and when you see evidence of the pain inside, you finally know you're really here? Then, when you watch the wound heal, it's comforting. Isn't it?

      Lee: I... That's a way to put it.

    • Crazy credits
      The legal disclaimer has typing errors:
      • "fictitious" is misspelled "ficticious"
      • "unintentional" is misspelled "unitentional"
      • unauthorized use of the film is warned as resulting in "civil liberty" instead of "civil liability"
    • Connections
      Featured in Late Show with David Letterman: Episode #10.42 (2002)
    • Soundtracks
      Whatchamacallit
      Performed by Juan García Esquivel (as Esquivel)

      Written by Juan García Esquivel (as Juan Garcia Esquivel)

      Courtesy of The RCA Records Label, a unit of BMG Entertainment

      Under license from BMG Special Products

    User reviews442

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    a dark comedy layered with nuanced social and personal commentary
    What is the path to love? For every person, it's different. The superficial circumstances are similar... you meet someone at work, at school, in a singles bar. And, usually, the emotional pathways are similar. Eyes meet. We talk. We dance. We communicate about ourselves to each other. Then begins the sexual part, so we parry and thrust, take signals from each other, and, over time, we feel each other up together. But what about the path to love through the back door (so to speak)? What about a love story where she's a young, neurotic woman, just out of a mental hospital back to a family where Dad's a serious drunk and Mom's a serious nervous fruitcake. And what about a man, an attorney, who's emotionally closed off and can only get in touch with orchids, inserting long stainless-steel tools into their waiting organs. Yes, these two find each other in one of the most bizarre cinematic love stories ever.

    I loved this movie. I pilgrim around, searching through books and movies for secret pathways to and circumstances of the human heart. This movie transcends its gentle S&M to reveal yet another way to love.

    Our heroine, the fresh-faced (and magnificently moon-like) Maggie Gyllenhaal is brilliant as the new secretary to a lawyer who goes through so many secretaries, he has a "secretary" vacancy sign he lights up outside his office. As our heroine tries to re-enter the world by getting her first job with this man, it becomes apparent that the boss is anything but normal. He is demanding yet insistent that his new charge break away from her stifling past and be herself. But what or who is she? And who in the hell is he?

    The movie is sexy. There's no denying it. Gyllenhaal is radiant and sinuous, and we feel that she's truly experiencing the wonder of it all for the first time. Spader is type-cast a bit, but his world-weary sexiness fits well with Gyllenhaal's naiveté. And, let's face it, Gyllenhaal is grippingly sexy, and we see her in hose, panties, tight skirts and in the nude. And as far as I'm concerned, she's fabulous, darling. And in one of the movie's sexiest, most endearing scenes, we see Spader carry her off in her urine-soaked wedding dress as he finally assumes his responsibilities as her loving "dom". She is totally tired, subservient and radiant in total surrender, rescued from a voyeurizing world. What a hunk of sexy cinema that was with her arm languidly draped around Spader's neck as he carried the bride over the threshold to love and dominance. Wow.

    This movie explores and explodes sexual myths. The director has successfully created a dark comedy layered with nuance in a stew of social commentary. This movie is not for everyone. Stay away if you're conventionally wrapped, conservative, or lacking in a certain joy of exploration. But if you're ready for a most untraditional-traditional love story, Spader and Gyllenhaal give Oscar worthy performances... but of course the subject matter nixed that.
    helpful•107
    11
    • stephenksmith
    • Apr 13, 2003

    FAQ3

    • What's up with the worm?
    • Why does Lee stare into the camera at the end of the film?
    • What songs are featured in the film?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • October 11, 2002 (United States)
      • United States
    • Official sites
      • Official site (France)
      • Official site (United Kingdom)
      • English
    • Also known as
    • Filming locations
      • The Darkroom, 5370 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, California, USA
    • Production companies
      • Slough Pond
      • TwoPoundBag Productions
      • double A Films
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • 1 hour 47 minutes
      • Color
      • Dolby

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