Taking time out from recording U2's new album, Bono's been busy co-writing - not to mention soundtracking - a film called The Million Dollar Hotel. We caught up with him at The Berlin Film Festival for the full SP. And some gorillas.

worldpop: You were in Berlin when the wall came down. How does it feel to be back?

Bono: It's a very different Berlin to the one where we recorded Achtung Baby. I remember it very well because we joined a big parade to celebrate this fantastic unification of Berlin. There was a lot of people marching down the road with glum faces and we thought, 'Gosh, those Germans they really don't know how to have a good time'. And then we found out we were in the wrong parade: it was the one protesting about the wall coming down. You can imagine: Irish rock group U2 protest about the wall coming down! But it's very nice being here again.

worldpop: Tell us about The Million Dollar Hotel.

Bono: The Million Dollar Hotel exists in downtown Los Angeles. It's a working hotel. In fact it was working while we were shooting. All kinds of people were getting out of the lift with the camera crew and actors. Quite often people couldn't tell who was an actor and crew member and who was living in the hotel, which was nice actually. But that's where the idea started from: the hotel. Edge and me just couldn't believe it's really called The Million Dollar Hotel. There are three stories in the film: there's a murder mystery, there's an art scam and there's a love story.

worldpop: There's some impressive names involved with the film, how did they come about?

Bono: Originally, I had in mind a play set on the roof of the hotel, the lobby and one of the rooms. But then I met Nicholas Klein and we developed a story and then the screenplay together. We were just going to make it very simply ourselves with a guerrilla-style shoot. Then, through a friend of Nicholas's we had heard Mel Gibson had got hold of the script and that he really liked it. So he invited us to breakfast. We thought, 'Wow! We're in the movies now! You just make a story up and Mel Gibson invites you to breakfast. This is easy'!

worldpop: Breakfast with Mel Gibson probably isn't a fry up at a greasy spoon, is it?

Bono: We went to the Bel Air Hotel where they have - believe it or not - a power breakfast which is a load of really exciting agent types in suites all drinking mint tea. So there were all these agents and Mel, who was very relaxed. He said, 'This is a good script, I'll see if I can do anything for you'. And we thought, 'Wow, OK. We have a bodyguard. We have a 365-pound gorilla' [of course you do. Ed]. Which you need in Hollywood [Naturally. Ed.] And then it kind of went off. Next we met Wim Wenders [director of Paris, Texas] and I said we have this story and I'd like your advice on it. I just slowly reeled him in. So then we had Wim Wenders, the 365-pound gorilla and my band.

worldpop: which brings us to the soundtrack. It's a proper film soundtrack rather than just a collection of songs. That's something of a rarity these days isn't it?

Bono: Soundtracks have become something else now. They have become another way to market a film and the film is another way to market the album which is fine, that's good. But they have become like collections, anthologies of work rather than the classic soundtracks, which to me often have just one mood or various themes on one mood. Some of the great movie soundtracks, Paris Texas and The Godfather have that, and that's what we wished for with ours.

worldpop: One of the new U2 songs on the soundtrack for The Million Dollar Hotel features lyrics by Salman Rushdie. Interesting?

Bono: The Americans call it vertical integration. As always, people make a decision for reasons of convenience a lot of the times. Your point of view depends on the people who are in the room with. So I have always thought make sure you are in the room with the right people. I've known Salman for a while. It doesn't really make sense that he ended up writing the lyrics to one of these songs, but again it was convenient. It happened to work out that way. I think it's exciting too when you have got all this stuff around.

worldpop: You've also made a video for the song, The Ground Beneath Her Feet, starring Salman Rushdie.

Bono: Wim Wenders shot a very simple piece with U2. We are not putting this song out as a single, but we wanted some filmed record of it. So Salman came over to Dublin and became the video's star for the day. It was very funny. He was very amused being given directions by Wim, you know, walk three paces to the left and turn right and he was just giving that wicked smile into the camera.

worldpop: The main character in the film, Tom Tom, appears quite angel-like. Is that what we can expect from the film?

Bono: Being literal about it, it's certainly not a story of an angel. It might be the story of a Christ, it's more of a Christ story. In this case it's a retarded, slow child as Christ.

worldpop: Do you identify with Jesus yourself?

Bono: I'd like all of the upside and none of the downside. You can keep your nails in your bag, but the kneeling is fine.

worldpop: Is religion still important to you?

Bono: Yes, I am still interested in that rather amazing story. I still can't quite get my head around it, that there maybe is this force behind the universe and that it should choose to express itself as a child born in shit and straw. I think that's the most amazing story I ever heard. I'm still working it out.

worldpop: What does religion give you?

Bono: That's not the sort of question I can answer at this time of the morning. In fact it's hard at any time of the day. And I find that such matters they can't be reduced to one simple line. You would have to turn a complex series of feelings and thoughts in a bumper sticker.

worldpop: Does it ever occur to you that you're one if the biggest rock
stars in the world?

Bono: I don't think about it actually. I live in a city where being a rock star isn't particularly seen as a plus. There was a time in the '60s and '70s when people said, 'Wow, what have they got to say?' A lot of the time they didn't have very much to say. But it's always been a bit ridiculous because writers or painters have much more to say. The rock star really is a myth. People don't buy into it anymore. They buy into the tunes, they only buy into the band if they believe in the tunes, but that's as far as it goes. I just want to be in a great band and I want to use my voice to put across ideas that are
interesting to us. And maybe to other people.

worldpop: Do you think there's an age limit to being a pop star?

Bono: Regarding U2, I have no idea if we're gonna want to do this in a couple of years, but right now we are very happy.