Nothing is taboo when director Joaquin Oristrell explores the early years of modern psychiatry in Unconscious (Inconscientes) , a wonderfully giddy Spanish sex farce set in 1913 Barcelona, Spain.   

A very pregnant Alma (a sensuous Leonor Watling, Bad Education ) discovers that her husband, Leon Pardo (Alex Brendemuhl), a notable psychiatrist, has received some disturbing news and disappeared. Fearing the worst, she enlists the aid of her brother-in-law Salvador (Luis Tosar, Miami Vice ), another psychoanalyst.

Slavador comically plays Watson to Alma's Sherlock as they hunt the missing man. Their only lead is Leon's unfinished treatise on female sexuality, case studies of four distinct and unusual female patients.

Oristrell uses sumptuous filmmaking techniques to enhance this manic romantic comedy/mystery/period piece. He uses clever cuts, sepia-toned saturated frames and a rich color palette to augment this delightful romp. He and his fellow screenwriters, Teresa de Pelegri and Dominic Harari, deliver a tightly plotted masterpiece zinging with witty barbs and profound thoughts on man in an early age of enlightenment.

Sometimes a movie is just a movie, but Unconscious is an enchanting Spanish film destined to captivate and amuse American audiences.

Grade: A