Nicole Kidman: 'Back to my core'

'Birthday Girl' is 'about the "unlikeness" of two people'


Nicole Kidman plays a Russian mail-order bride in her new film, "Birthday Girl."

PARK CITY, Utah (CNN) -- CNN film reviewer Paul Clinton spoke with actress Nicole Kidman at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival to discuss her new romance thriller "Birthday Girl," co-starring Ben Chaplin.

CNN: In "Birthday Girl," you play a Russian mail-order bride. But when you get to England you aren't exactly what the husband is expecting.

NICOLE KIDMAN: No. First of all he thinks I can speak English -- and I can't. The film takes a lot of twists and turns. All I can say is that I'm Russian. It's kind of a love story, but it's funny and it's also a little bit scary at times.

CNN: It's also about love, about breaking down barriers, about communicating without communicating.

KIDMAN: Also, I think it's about the "unlikeness" of two people -- that's what I thought was sweet about it, actually. Through everything, all the obstacles, and how different they are, they still connect, even with everything they go through.

CNN: I hear you have a flawless Russian dialect. You speak in Russian and you do a Russian accent. How hard was that?

KIDMAN: At first, I thought it was extremely daunting, because I thought I would never be able to do that ... and I thought I would look like a complete and utter fool trying to do a Russian accent, let alone speak in Russian.

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CNN's Paul Clinton talks with Nicole Kidman at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival.

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Then, I met a Russian girl through the Russian embassy in Australia. I became very good friends with her. She was my teacher. Then, I became obsessed with the language. So, I went from one (extreme) to the other. Now, I love the language so much. I would love to eventually go to Russia and do Chekhov in Russia.

It's such a beautiful language. And it's very difficult, but it's very beautiful to listen to.

Picking people

CNN: You seem to pick your projects based on the director. And you pick people who aren't necessarily working in the Hollywood system. Why does that work so well for you?

KIDMAN: I don't know. I just pick them instinctually. It probably won't always work well for me.

I sit down with the director and I say, "Yeah, we would have good chemistry together. You would be able to draw something out of me and I would be able to draw something out of you."

I'm also willing to go anywhere in the world. I went to Spain to do "The Others." I went to Australia to do "Moulin Rouge." I've just flown back from Sweden where I'm working with Lars von Trier.

I like being an actor and traveling. I love the idea of the world being a small place.

CNN: Speaking of which, you play a Russian, you're really Australian, but you weren't born in Australia -- a lot of people would be surprised about where you were born.

KIDMAN: Hawaii. My dad was studying ... . He had a scholarship at the University of Hawaii. And that's where I happened to be born. And then we moved to Washington, D.C. until I was three. But both my parents are Australian. I'm a weird mix. I'm a mutt.

CNN: Do you have duel citizenship?

KIDMAN: Yes, I do have duel citizenship. And so do my kids. I told them that they will appreciate that when they are older.

CNN: We have to talk about Golden Globes. You were nominated for "The Others" and for "Moulin Rouge." Both were really different movies --"Moulin Rouge" is very risky. How do you feel about the recognition you've gotten from those movies?

KIDMAN: I can't believe it. I do have to say it's kind of been an extraordinary time.

When I got the phone call saying that you've been nominated in both categories, I just went, "This is astounding."

When I was making "The Others" I thought, "Oh, I'm making a small little film that probably no one is going to see. But I like it."

With "Moulin Rouge," it was like, "This thing could be a complete disaster." But Ewan McGregor and I would look at each other and go, "Are we out of our mind or is this really special?"

You never know. Finally, for it to come to this. (Laughs.) It's just one of those things where you pinch yourself. Also, I'm just trying to say, "Appreciate it." As my mum says, "Take the time and smell the roses a bit because it rarely happens." Wow.

CNN: This past year has been amazing for you. It's been the best of times and the worst of times. There's been a lot of growth, I imagine. Do you feel like you've changed?

KIDMAN: In some ways I've changed and in some ways I've kind of come back to my core, like who I am in a weird way.

It's such a surreal experience when all these things happen in your life and they are all written about and everybody watches it. Somehow you have to get through it.

I think what really has been apparent to me is my friends. All the other stuff is amazing, but I've got great friends and I know how to keep it in perspective. Thank God for my mum and dad and my sister and the people in my life who love me.

CNN: Well, good luck with Golden Globes.

KIDMAN: Thank you. I'm going to go and have a really good night. I don't care what happens either way. I said to Russell Crowe -- one of my best friends, and Naomi Watts, we've all grown up together and we all know each other really well -- I said, "Let's make sure we have a party."