Secretary

"The film treats the subject of S&M with a kind of confused interest worthy of Madonna."

"It provokes nothing but yawns, and the sex it explores is stuff everybody knows about and says, 'So what?'"

"Too original to be ignored."

"Profound, witty and insightful... are probably three of the things "Secretary" wants to be. Unfortunately, with its slight, overstretched story, and facile moral, this Sundance Festival winner disappoints."

"Playfully subversive and oddly life-affirming."

"Approaches the tricky subject of sadomasochism with a stealthy tread, avoiding the dangers of making it either too offensive, or too funny."

"As darkly comic as it is, Shainberg’s picture addresses themes that are deadly serious."

"Sadomasochism is treated as a joke in Secretary, but the fun of the movie is that it’s also much more than a joke."

"This is Gyllenhaals's tour de force. She is remarkable and original."