ROTTEN TOMATOES: Mike Newell Drops Early Prince of Persia Details! Comments

Mike Newell Drops Early Prince of Persia Details!

by Fred Topel | November 12, 2007

Summary

Only five days into development on Prince of Persia, director Mike Newell made the last rounds of press for his current film, Love in the Time of Cholera. When asked about the video game movie, he could barely contain his excitement for the material. Back to Article

(1-46 of 46 posts) | Reply

rgallitan writes:
on Nov 12 2007 12:31 AM

Okay, the last bit sounded a little, uh... drug-induced. But otherwise my excitement remains undampened.

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Ruckas356 writes:
on Nov 12 2007 01:09 AM

With disney behind this, i think this will be a great film. it was a great game, i mean a great game, for real. This will set the standard for video game movies mark my words!!

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jacog writes:
on Nov 12 2007 02:00 AM

I hope it's both a good film and a financial success... then perhaps we'll see more Jordan Mechner in the form of a film adaptation of The Last Express.

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stg writes:
on Nov 12 2007 02:47 AM

This is going to be great can't wait, obviously Newell is very excited and will put his best effort to it. Its also great he is taking into consideration the key elements of the video game, which so far every game to movie adaptation has failed to do(Resident Evil). So hopefully this will finally break the mould, and i hope they cast a good and suitable actor in the role of the prince.

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plughole writes:
on Nov 12 2007 03:08 AM

his assistant plays video games for his job. Tough life.

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jacog writes:
on Nov 12 2007 03:48 AM

In reply to this comment (#1270814)
stg: Haha, yah... a suitable actor. :) I do hope it's not flavour-of-the-week Shia LaBoeuf (isn't La Boeuf French for "the beef"?) again. He seems to be getting a ton of work all of a sudden. They should find someone with at least moderately appropriate ethnicity.

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Vortex&Vertigo writes:
on Nov 12 2007 04:35 AM

I like when he says that the movie is not a video game. Maybe with that approach we can finally see a good movie based on one.

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jasperoosterveld writes:
on Nov 12 2007 05:09 AM

Its so funny that they got Mike Newell for a videogame movie, when did that ever happened? I hope the movie is going to be good, it has potential :)

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jacog writes:
on Nov 12 2007 05:13 AM

Well, if you had to pull a few names of "directors of video game adaptations" out your rear, then you end up with names like Uwe Boll and Paul WS Anderson... not good. In order for something like this to earn the respect of the masses, you need a respect-worthy director, a respect-worthy script, and a respect-worthy cast. So far we have two out of three on this one.

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dahluzz writes:
on Nov 12 2007 06:44 AM

newell: "so bucky, what plot point have you come across in today's playing?"

assistant: "uhh... well I kind of got stuck on this one part where I was sposta, like, run on the walls or something. I mean, it's a really hard game sir, but I think that's what will make it such a great movie. I'll probly need a few more weeks to fight my way through the first one."

newell: "smashing job, bucky old chap. I'm SO relieved I don't actually have to PLAY that dreadful thing."

bucky: best. job. EVER.

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The_Duckling writes:
on Nov 12 2007 08:55 AM

dahluzz: you said it all, lol!

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therereturn writes:
on Nov 12 2007 08:56 AM

Uwe Boll is somewhere reading this article going, "Oh, ****. He's actually going to make it good...."

His assistant doesn't have the best job, by the way. Unless Newell is also planning on adapting Halo and Oblivion.

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Rockslide writes:
on Nov 12 2007 09:10 AM

I've got to throw it in every thread mentioning Prince of Persia, someone else mentioned it in the other thread but I have to help push it, haha.

Sendhil Ramamurthy should be the lead!

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stg writes:
on Nov 12 2007 11:23 AM

its the "Prince of Persia" for godsake not the "Prince of India", the princess is indian maybe Sendhil Ramamurthy could play her(geez). Play the game dude and get the facts straight.

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minderbinder writes:
on Nov 12 2007 01:12 PM

Is it really that big a deal if they cast an indian actor like Sendhil Ramamurthy instead of someone who's actually persian?

People play different nationalities all the time, and as long as the performance is good the audience is fine with it.

Look at Naveen Andrews on Lost. Does anyone care that an actor of Indian descent is playing an Iraqi? Nope, they just love the character and the performance.

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ManofStee1 writes:
on Nov 12 2007 01:27 PM

Uh... what?

Prince of Persia deserves to have a good story, but am I the only one hoping that this will be much more of an action movie than a romance? I want to see the Prince from The Two Thrones, the one that could take Neo in a fight.

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stg writes:
on Nov 12 2007 02:20 PM

I am just pointing out the absurdity of an indian actor portraying a persian prince invading india. its not the matter of portraying different nationalities, ofcourse people do it all time. But when you have an indian princess already in there why not cast somebody who can come-off as a believable prince of arab decent. having both the prince and princess of indian decent will make it difficult for an indian actor to portray that the prince is from persia. It will come-off as both of them looking like brother and sister in the end. Otherwise i have no prejudice against an actor of any decent portraying different nationalities.

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hewpot writes:
on Nov 12 2007 03:22 PM

hopefully with the success of this halo will be made, but as fer mike newell, his harry potter movie was terrible

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rgallitan writes:
on Nov 12 2007 05:12 PM

"but am I the only one hoping that this will be much more of an action movie than a romance?"

With all due respect, I certainly hope so. If you're a big fan of Warrior Within and Two Thrones, you'd better get used to the idea that this movie is going to be something else entirely. Jordan Mechner was not involved in those games. Of the new series, he only designed Sands of Time, and that's what you're going to get - straight-up romantic High Adventure. The Arabian Nights meets Indiana Jones. And that doesn't mean it won't have some amazing stunt-work... but this is NOT The Matrix.

But if you like grim, brutal anti-heroes in a period setting, I'm sure somebody is seriously thinking about adapting God of War.

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rgallitan writes:
on Nov 12 2007 05:23 PM

As for casting, I'm not going to pick anybody, but don't be surprised if the Prince's original voice-actor, Yuri Lowenthal, show up among the hopefuls. Turns out he looks almost as much like the Prince as he sounds like him.

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raveninkreaper writes:
on Nov 12 2007 06:25 PM

Knowing hollywood, the odds of getting an actor who actually is of middle eastern decent is going to be tricky. It's disney, so he has to be good looking, young and agile- i can name a couple great middle eastern actors, but there aren't a whole lot of middle eastern teen idol parkour stuntmen out there (although we can only hope that day will come). The best bet would be to hold a casting call for a no-name who IS middle eastern, attractive and reasonably fit, and then get someone like David Belle or Tony Jaa to do all of the stunts. Over-use of wire work and CG will KILL this movie, we need this movie to have awesome and realistic looking parkour!!!!!!!!

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BlueMobius writes:
on Nov 12 2007 06:32 PM

Um...his ASSISTANT is playing the game? Shouldn't the director? That worries me a bit.

Also, the Stonehenge thing...uh, not even remotely part of the original story but with the creator writing the script, whatever.

I'll see it. I'll probably love it. I honestly care little about it.

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jeremyd4 writes:
on Nov 12 2007 06:51 PM

Just looked up this Yuri Lowenthal guy... he looks absolutely nothing like the prince at all.

I still maintain that Sendhil Ramamurthy should play the Prince, yes he may look more Indian, but the Persian empire consisted of many nationalities. He looks and sounds exactly like the prince from "Sands of Time". If they really insisted on a having a more arabic prince, Oded Fehr from "The Mummy" frachise would be equally as good. Obviously he's had work in big screen blockbusters like this before, and he looks pretty similar too, not to mention he's probably going to be better at any stunt work than Sendhil.

The film has to have parkour in it. That's why I would have rathered Martin Campbell direct the film because of his work in Casino Royale, that's what POP should aim for.

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evilralphwiggum writes:
on Nov 12 2007 06:57 PM

his harry potter was just fine.

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RuSTeDs writes:
on Nov 12 2007 06:59 PM

Stg what you're saying is true. But there is some truth to casting Indian actor as a prince in the movie. John Abraham's name has been flying all over casting threads at imdb and other such forums. He is half Persian half Indian, and is a very capable actor. Here are a few pics:
http://im.sify.com/entertainment/movies/images/oct2007/still6.jpg
http://www.hindu.com/mp/2006/07/22/images/2006072203080201.jpg

He acted in the critically acclaimed movie Water (2006, 91%)

http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1158228-water/

I'm not saying he is THE choice for the Prince, but he fits the look required for the Prince, got the required ethnicity and hes got acting the chops. Didnt Ben Kingsley play as Gandhi, even though he is half-indian?
But I doubt Bruckheimer would approve of casting a bollywood star though.

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mrcellophane45 writes:
on Nov 12 2007 07:10 PM

I am really stoked about this movie. I loved the game and I hope that it is really good.

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Ender7406 writes:
on Nov 12 2007 07:10 PM

Uh oh, I left my Mike Newell on...

Mike Newell OFF!

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oyguvaltshappy writes:
on Nov 12 2007 07:45 PM

it'll be huge, with Disney[/Bruckheimer?] behind this, so quality won't be an issue. Hopefully, they'll handle it as well as they handled the first Pirates movies, instead of how they handled its sequels [aka in a cocky way]

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jukeboxhero6660 writes:
on Nov 12 2007 07:52 PM

for once they picked a video game that has a story with some substance, they can actually do something with this one.

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rgallitan writes:
on Nov 12 2007 09:20 PM

In reply to this comment (#1272445)
Uh, not sure how you can dismiss Lowenthal as not looking accurate enough, and then suggest Oded Fehr. I like Fehr's work, but he's waaaay too square-jawed and suave - sortof an eastern George Clooney. I'll give you Ramamurthy though.

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stg writes:
on Nov 13 2007 12:33 AM

Yes RuSTeDs i know of john abraham, and he is definitely a one of the best bollyood actors, that is exactly what i am saying i have nothing against a bollywood actor playing a persian prince, but that actor should have the looks that help him in portraying a persian prince, I was just against Sendhil because he looks purely indian, whereas i think john could pull it off, as you said some people have the face cuts and the look that enables them to play all kinds of nationalities, like ben kingsley playing and indian(Gandhi), iranian(House of sand and fog) and more recently Polish(You Kill Me). So i think john would be a better choice than Sendhil, but as you said i also think Bruckheimer or disney wouldn't be willing to take that risk.

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ksduded writes:
on Nov 13 2007 03:05 AM

the only Indian actor who can play it perfectly is Hrithik Roshan. He is very acrobatic, and he looks very similar too

http://blog.com.np/wp-content/uploads/2006/11/ash_hritik_dhoom_2.jpg
http://media.movietalkies.com/wallpapers/bollywood/artiste/hrithikroshan/hrithikroshan-1b.jpg

and Ashwariya (the girl in the first picture) won't be too bad as Farah.

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digitalsoul68 writes:
on Nov 13 2007 06:43 AM

In reply to this comment (#1272935)
I COMPLETELY agree with Aishwariya, ksduded. Hrithik does look the part, but I have to agree with RuSTeDs' pick in John Abraham (esp. the way he looks in the second photo).

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Warheart1188 writes:
on Nov 13 2007 07:56 AM

Ha! Newell has an assistant playing the games for him? And he's full of f***king ideas?! I'm starting to like this guy.

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Heath H. writes:
on Nov 13 2007 11:19 AM

Well, looks like the video-game-to-film sub-genre is getting brighter, especially with this AND the (so-far anyway) decent sounding Max Payne details.

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fuj_ball writes:
on Nov 13 2007 01:49 PM

In reply to this comment (#1271640)
It's called... acting!!

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Bloody Mathias writes:
on Nov 13 2007 04:03 PM

His assistant plays the game and tells him what happens? Uh oh.
Serously, that game has to be expeirenced. I'm calling it right now, Newell's gonna screw it up even with the game creator's script.

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ksduded writes:
on Nov 13 2007 04:36 PM

In reply to this comment (#1273072)
i agree that john looks the part, but he is severely lacking in talent. He does not have a good body language (very stiff) and his acting leaves a lot to be desired. This is where Hrithik shines, he is the only Indian actor who has been convincing in a super hero role (Krrish), and he is very acrobatic, a quality that is as important to play the Prince convincingly as it is to look the part and act well.

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romsy writes:
on Nov 13 2007 05:52 PM

umm, rgallitan, Yuri Lowenthal is like 36 and is an out of shape white guy with blue eyes,

how in any way does he look like a young bad *** Arabian prince? anyway, this has great

promise and could turn into a trilogy if it makes enough money, i would like to see that

considering the story lines of the other two games are amazing as well. common who doesnt

want to see the Dahaka on the big screen kicking ***?

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RuSTeDs writes:
on Nov 13 2007 07:14 PM

Ksuded, Hrithik roshan looks totally Indian, unlike John whose mother was Iranian. And the role of a Prince does not require tremendous acting skills, so body language does not count. If we were talking about a casting decision of say, Solid Snake, then I'd also consider acting chops as well as versatility.

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RuSTeDs writes:
on Nov 13 2007 07:14 PM

In reply to this comment (#1274551)
romsy, Persians are not Arabs.

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ksduded writes:
on Nov 13 2007 11:23 PM

In reply to this comment (#1274719)
body language does not count?

If you have played any of the Prince of Persia games, you will know that "it is the body language" that counts the most. I have played all the versions of Prince of Perisa (yeah the first side scrolling XT version as well) and the most remarkable thing about the series was the fluidity of animation and the acrobatic moves. Now if we have an actor who is not comfortable with his body language, he won't be able to do justice to the role. The audience does not care whether the actor has Persian heritage or not, they want to see whether the actor can act the part.

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RuSTeDs writes:
on Nov 14 2007 01:52 PM

But ksuded, I'm sure they will train the actor (whoever it may be) vigorously in acrobatics, sword-fighting nad whatnot. If you are talking about hand gestures and body movement, then that can be fixed as well. Orlando Bloom according to me is the most boring, stiffest and really rigid actor yet he gets cast in adventure roles. I dont think details like body movement or hand gestures count. Actually, majority of audience doesnt care who gets cast or whether or not he can play the part. You, me and other PoP fans who are in the minority care about who gets cast, his background and if he has the Prince look. Only people who might care about whether the actor can act the part or not are the critics, and I guess they might be willing to overlook that if the movie is entertaining enough.

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ksduded writes:
on Nov 15 2007 08:09 AM

In reply to this comment (#1276177)
Orlando Bloom has a massive fan following, that is why he is casted and the movies take the box office. John does not have a massive following even within India as Hrithik has. Plus I just want to know whether you seriously think that John could have pulled off a better Krrish or Dhoom 2 act? And if you really think that John can act the part, then in most sincerity i think the makeup artists can make Hrithik look more like the Prince. (And I really think that John does not look like the Prince any more than Hrithik)

Anyways i think that this is more to personal choice and we both are not willing to move from our own. So I guess its case closed. But it was nice to have a lively chat.

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rowley666 writes:
on Jun 18 2008 11:08 PM

Who could be better than Kurt Cobain as the Prince.

(Reply to this)

rowley666 writes:
on Jun 18 2008 11:15 PM

Who could be better than Kurt Cobain as the Prince.

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