The Little Death, which marks the arrival of Australian writer-director Josh Lawson, is both an edgy sex comedy and a warm-hearted depiction of the secret lives of five suburban couples living in Sydney. Lawson's searing and sometimes shocking screenplay weaves together a story that explores a range of sexual fetishes and the repercussions that come with sharing them.

Expertly juggling his multiple narratives, Lawson also gives an endearing performance as the loving husband desperate to fulfill his wife's rape fantasy, and his co-stars include such fine Australian comic talents as Bojana Novakovic, Damon Herriman, Kate Box, and Patrick Brammall. Alternately hilarious and harrowing, The Little Death will have you laughing, squirming and, yes, nodding with recognition. If there's one thing that this survey of private sex lives proves, it's that there's no such thing as normal.