Russian actress Xenia Rappoport gives a rich, complex lead performance in Giuseppe Tornatore's Italian thriller, THE UNKNOWN WOMAN (LA SCONOSCIUTA). Rappoport stars as Irena, a deeply troubled Ukrainian woman who has just arrived in Italy. She is desperate to get a job working in a specific building, mopping floors and doing whatever is necessary, even giving significant parts of her payment to the super (Alessandro Haber) she convinces to hire her. After causing Gina (Piera Degli Esposti) to have a terrible accident, Irena takes over Gina's job, working as a nanny for Thea (Clara Dossena) and her parents, Valeria (Claudia Gerini) and Donato (Pierfrancesco Favino). While growing very close with the young child, Irena suffers from horrible flashbacks and bad memories in which she is a blonde involved in some kind of mysterious sex trade headed by a man called Mold (Michele Placido). Irena brutally teaches Thea how to fight back when she's picked on at school, the way Irena was unable to fight back for so long against Mold, but things threaten to implode when Valeria starts becoming suspicious of Irena's motives.

THE UNKNOWN WOMAN is a modern-day film noir, with clues slowly being revealed until it all comes together in the end, with plenty of surprises. Tornatore, who has made such international hits as MALENA, THE LEGEND OF 1900, and CINEMA PARADISO--which won the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film--keeps things moving at a steady pace, allowing the characters to grow in depth and emotion. THE UNKNOWN WOMAN captured five prestigious David di Donatello Awards in Italy, including Best Film, Best Director (Tornatore), Best Actress (Rappoport), Best Cinematography (Fabio Zamarion), and Best Composer (Ennio Morricone).