Prince of Persia Videogame Movie Not a Videogame Movie

According to director Mike Newell, the far-off Prince of Persia: Sands of Time movie based on the videogame is not in fact a videogame movie.

Asked about the project during promotions for his current film Love in the Time of Cholera, Newell said, "It's not a videogame movie. It's a great story. If you had read the script, you would know that it wasn't a videogame. It's very exciting and it's immensely romantic and it's like Lost Horizon. It takes you to somewhere you've never been."

Despite Newell's protestation, the script, by Prince of Persia creator Jordan Mechner and Day After Tomorrow screenwriter Jeffrey Nachmanoff, is based on the Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time entry in the long-running game franchise. To give himself background on the game and ensure that "key details" are accurate, Newell has an assistant playing the games.

"There's so much that will happen with that story because it's 1300 years ago," he continued. "This girl who was actually a kind of priest ... I'm sorry, I've been on it five days. I'm full of fucking ideas. It'll be terrific."

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time is being produced by Jerry Bruckheimer Films and Disney, and is scheduled for a summer 2009 release.