In 1997, he starred in Gabriele Salvatores' cyberpunk science fiction film "Nirvana". The film tells the story of a virtual reality game designer, played by Lambert, who discovers that the main character of his game has achieved sentience due to an attack by a computer virus. The film was screened out of competition at the Cannes Film Festival. It went on to win one and was nominated for eight David di Donatello Awards, nominated for best film at Fantasporto, won best director at Flaiano International Prizes, won three and was nominated for two Golden Ciak Awards, nominated for one Italian Golden Globe, and nominated for five awards of the Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists.