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Secretary [DVD] [2003]
 
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Secretary [DVD] [2003]

DVD ~ James Spader
4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
RRP: £19.99
Price: £19.59 & this item Delivered FREE in the UK with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions
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Customers buy this item with White Palace [DVD] [1991] DVD ~ Susan Sarandon

Secretary [DVD] [2003] + White Palace [DVD] [1991]
Price For Both: £23.57

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  • This item: Secretary [DVD] [2003] DVD ~ James Spader

    In stock.
    Dispatched from and sold by Amazon.co.uk.
    This item Delivered FREE in the UK with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions

  • White Palace [DVD] [1991] DVD ~ Susan Sarandon

    In stock.
    Dispatched from and sold by Amazon.co.uk.
    Eligible for FREE UK delivery on orders over £5 with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions

What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

Secretary [2002] [DVD]
52% buy
Secretary [2002] [DVD] 4.0 out of 5 stars (12)
Secretary [DVD] [2003]
41% buy the item featured on this page:
Secretary [DVD] [2003] 4.1 out of 5 stars (30)
£19.59
White Palace [DVD] [1991]
3% buy
White Palace [DVD] [1991] 4.6 out of 5 stars (5)
£3.98
Shortbus [DVD] [2006]
2% buy
Shortbus [DVD] [2006] 3.7 out of 5 stars (24)
£3.98
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Product details

  • Actors: James Spader, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Jeremy Davies, Lesley Ann Warren, Stephen McHattie
  • Directors: Steven Shainberg
  • Writers: Steven Shainberg, Erin Cressida Wilson, Mary Gaitskill
  • Producers: Amy Hobby, Andrew Fierberg, Jamie Beardsley, Joel Posner
  • Format: Anamorphic, PAL, Widescreen
  • Language English
  • Region: All Regions
  • Aspect Ratio: 1.77:1
  • Number of discs: 1
  • Classification: 18
  • Studio: Tartan Video
  • DVD Release Date: 5 Jan 2004
  • Run Time: 107 minutes
  • Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
  • ASIN: B0000SVW8G
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 11,521 in DVD (See Bestsellers in DVD)

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Reviews

Amazon.co.uk Review
Secretary is a kinky love story featuring a standout performance by Maggie Gyllenhaal, an offbeat young actress in her first starring role. Gyllenhaal plays Lee, a nervous girl who compulsively cuts herself, but who then gets a job as a secretary for Edward, an imperious lawyer (James Spader, an old hand at tales of perverse affection). Edward's reprimands for typos and spelling errors begin with mild humiliation, but as Lee responds to his orders--which are driven as much by his own anxieties and fears as any sense of order--the punishments escalate to spankings, shackles and more.

Secretary walks a fine line: it finds sly humour in these sadomasochistic doings without turning them into a gag and it takes Lee and Edward's mutual desires seriously without getting self-righteous or pompous. Certainly not a movie for everyone, but some people may be unexpectedly stirred up by this smart and steamy tale of repressed passion. --Bret Fetzer

DVD Description
When Lee Holloway (Maggie Gyllenhaal - Donnie Darko, Adaptation) gets a job as a secretary in a small firm, she does her best to please. But her new boss (James Spader - Stargate, Crash) finds fault with her typing and administers a rather unconventional kind of punishment. Soon Lee realizes that she is not only becoming the perfect secretary, but also the woman she always wanted to be. Daring, sexy and provocative, this award-winning film is a must for anyone who’s ever had a hard day at work …

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Customer Reviews

30 Reviews
5 star:
 (20)
4 star:
 (4)
3 star:    (0)
2 star:
 (1)
1 star:
 (5)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.1 out of 5 stars (30 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Secretary, 20 Nov 2003
A deeply thought-provoking film, dealing in a masterly and subtle way with the dark side of human sexuality. The psychological damage shown by the two protagonists is realistically and convincingly portrayed, highlighting their humanity through the use of both humour and pathos. The ending is perhaps a little contrived, but nevertheless this is a film which you will keep on thinking about long after you have seen it.
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17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars *Secretary*, 17 Feb 2005
By Doilooklikeiwantabigissue (East Sussex, England) - See all my reviews
'Secretary' begins by throwing us into the life of Lee, a compulsive self-mutilator who lands herself a job as an eccentric lawyer's secretary after being released from the psychiatric institution. Quite a lot to stomach already, then the story develops into a tale of love at first sight with a seriously sadomasochistic twist, as Lee is immediately drawn to her domineering boss. He in turn seems to share the same feelings but is apparently incapable of forging relationships, therefore the only way they experience their romance is through darkly comical S&M experiences. Morally wrong perhaps but director Steven Shainburg portrays the fetish theme in a surprisingly gentle light allowing the film to continue as a love story in one way or an other.

Whilst 'Secretary' is slightly out there on a proverbial limb, the aim was not to shock but to portray love from a perspective outside of the social norms. On that note it succeeds and while criticisms do exist over the morality of one torture replacing an other, the general tone of the film is surprisingly optimistic and romantic.

Maggie Gyllenhaal shines with a breakthrough role as the submissive Lee with a turn which saw her achieve a Golden Globe nomination. Her energetic performance most certainly deserved more as she played a very challenging role down to an almost perfection.
It was a routine walk in the park for James Spader, almost a veteran on the indie scene. Nevertheless he was still very impressive as Mr. Grey, the obsessive lawyer as he surprisingly manages to force the audience into building up an odd likeness of his character despite all of his odd eccentricities.

Sadomasochism is a tricky subject but 'Secretary' approaches it carefully, avoiding offence and the shock factor. Shainburg has also done a brilliant job in creating these two characters but making them very human by not alienating them. If you have been looking for a rom-com in the vein of 'The Wedding Planner' or even 'The Wedding Singer', then it's likely to be a safe bet not to go near 'Secretary'. However if you are not afraid to experience a much darker romantic comedy with an other twist added onto that then this might just be your thing.

8/10

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16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Taking romance movies back from the schmultz-merchants!, 20 Nov 2003
By eighteighteight (Manchester, England) - See all my reviews
Secretary does what somebody should have done a long time ago. It's a romance that pushes the point that not every couple is the pastel-shaded sunshine couple that you get in most rom-coms, calling each other pet names and sitting in on Sunday with the papers. Secretary is dark, witty, funny, romantic and genuinely fresh. If you're looking for a standard romcom, or if you've made any assumptions due to the film's title, think again. If you're a fan of subversive, brave and honest cinema than I can't recommend Secretary highly enough.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

1.0 out of 5 stars Secretary
Waste of money more tack than smack lets have some real spanking DVD's with real spanking please
Published 5 months ago by Mrs. S. Robinson

5.0 out of 5 stars O'yeah
My new ambition in life - get a Secretary.

The movie has a clever sense of humour and a very erotic story line. Read more
Published 16 months ago by The Keigmeister

5.0 out of 5 stars Love is love
On reading some of the reviews of this fabulous film I began to dispare that others had seen an entirely different movie! Read more
Published 23 months ago by Mo Hunt

5.0 out of 5 stars An American Art House Classic!!!
"Secretary" is a classic American film. It has the distinct flavour of a European art house film because of its intelligence, pace and style. Read more
Published on 18 Jul 2007 by nmollo

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful and original
This film is one of the most beautiful, adult and genuinely romantic love stories I have ever seen, as well as being genuinely and refreshingly original. Read more
Published on 17 April 2006 by David Welsh

5.0 out of 5 stars So much more than simply soft porn
Whoever called this light-hearted soft-porn should stop fast forwarding through the tragic parts and notice that it depicts a highly unstable girl engaging in self-harm and... Read more
Published on 19 Mar 2006 by Sha

4.0 out of 5 stars Oooo! It hurts so good.
The joy of SECRETARY lies in its characters, all of whom are quirky (to say the least). And if you leave the film thankful that you run with "normal" folks, then you... Read more
Published on 28 Jan 2006 by Joseph Haschka

2.0 out of 5 stars Tack not smack
Very dissapointing, silly and not very tittillating or funny!
It felt like something more was going to happen but it never did and then the film was over leaving me and the... Read more
Published on 30 Dec 2004 by tenchy1

5.0 out of 5 stars "Miss Holloway, bend over and place your elbows on the desk"
I stumbled across this fantasic masterpiece quite by accident. It was late at night and I was up doing the ironing. Read more
Published on 29 Nov 2004 by Sue Lewendon

5.0 out of 5 stars Secretary - erotic, moving and inspired!
Having always loved James Spader in his off-the-wall character portrayals, I was always sure this film would be good - how right I was - fantastic script, brilliant acting from... Read more
Published on 28 Nov 2004 by Abi

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