With two films out that feature her in sexy scenes, Penelope Cruz is the lady to beat at the moment. The Spanish actress hit the red carpet in New York on Tuesday(August 5) for a private screening of her new film "Elegy," in which she stars alongside Oscar winner Sir Ben Kingsley.         In a vintage Chanel dress, Cruz dazzled, despite having crisscrossed the U.S. from Los Angeles, where she was promoting her other film "Vicky Cristina Barcelona," the night before.       "Elegy" is a story about the passionate relationship between celebrated college professor David Kepesh (Kingsley) and a young gorgeous student, Consuela Castillo. The passionate relationship transcends any level either anticipated, and while Consuela's beauty is ravishing, it also leads David to become unstable.        The relationship between Consuela and David is heated and Cruz bares all in the highly charged love scenes. But Cruz isn't forthcoming with her feelings about doing nude scenes and says she'd prefer to talk about other aspects of the film. To the contrary, cast mate Patricia Clarkson isn't shy about her turn taking it off.        Sir Ben Kingsley's absence was felt at the premiere as most of the cast talked about their respect for him as an actor. Peter Sarsgaard even cites Kingsley as a reason for doing the film.   Director Isabel Coixet, whose previous films include "My Life Without Me" and "The Secret Life of Words" says turning Phillip Roth's novel into a film, was somewhat nerve wracking because she is such a fan of his work. But she points out that with her all-star cast, she never had any hesitations about bringing the erotic film to the screen."Elegy" opens in theaters in North America on August 8th.(Agencies) ... read more »