Birthday Girl [VHS]

The Movie:

• Birthday Girl is a dark romantic thriller directed by Jez Butterworth.

• It stars Nicole Kidman as Nadia, a Russian mail-order bride, and Ben Chaplin as John Buckingham, a shy English bank clerk who orders her online.

• Initially, John is disappointed because Nadia speaks no English — but he quickly falls for her. The plot takes a sharp turn when two shady Russian men (played by Vincent Cassel and Mathieu Kassovitz) show up, and it becomes clear Nadia is part of a scam involving crime and robbery.

• Nicole Kidman speaks most of her dialogue in Russian (with a heavy accent) in the film, showing her range in a very different kind of role.