Kim Rossi Stuart

Kim Rossi Stuart is the Italian equivalent of Paul Newman: a sparkling-eyed heartthrob who, lo and behold, also happens to be one of the finest actors of his generation. Early on in his career, before he became famous, Rossi Stuart played the small part of the novice in the medieval murder mystery "The Name of the Rose." Pardon the terrible pun, but... he is no longer a novice.

As an actor, Rossi Stuart has garnered plaudits from audiences and critics for his star turns in such films as "The Garden of Eden," in which he played Jeoshua (Jesus Christ). The son of God is a difficult role, and anyone might feel daunted by the task of topping it, but this was 1998, and Rossi Stuart was just getting started.

In the 2004 family drama "The Keys to the House," in a nuanced and unsentimental portrayal of a father meeting his handicapped son for the first time, Rossi Stuart demonstrated a poignant but restrained humanity that anchors the story.

He has also had success as a director: in his directorial debut, "Anche libero va bene," he starred as another father, this time a parent who stayed with the family when the mother abandoned them. His character is flawed, immature, and even abusive, but Rossi Stuart layers him with enough complexity to keep him from slipping into a dislikable caricature.