Alithea (Tilda Swinton ) is a lonely woman who is also a well-educated scholar. While away visiting Istanbul for work, Alithea decides to purchase herself a gift. She finds an odd-shaped bottle that catches her eye, and after the store owner explains its beauty and heritage, she decides to purchase it. After returning to her hotel room, Alithea looks closer at her new purchase and cleans it with her motorised toothbrush. While cleaning, she discovers a Djinn, aka a Genie (Idris Elba), was hidden inside.
The Djinn explains to Alithea that he is to grant her three wishes- whatever her heart desires- along with explaining the rules. But Alithea, a wise and smart scholar, considers herself no fool and tells the Djinn that each wish will have tragic consequences. To provide peace of mind, the Djinn begins to tell his stories and past experiences of the various people he has encountered, including those alive during biblical times. Alithea will soon make big discoveries about this Djinn and some significant discoveries about herself.
Three Thousand Years of Longing is best described as a fantasy film with an added adventure element. The film takes its audience on a journey filled with wonderful imagery and various extremely unpredictable stories. Perhaps, for some viewers, the experiences that occur on-screen at first may seem extremely odd and weird. But there’s more to this film than just another genie and lamp story. It’s deep, meaningful and requires an audience willing to think and pay attention to the smaller elements and the spoken dialogue.
I’m excited to announce that this is entirely different and unexpected compared to what Director George Miller (Best known for his work with films like Mad Max, Happy Feet and Babe) has done previously. The director has tackled a project unlike anything he’s ever done before and has challenged himself to a new level. Visually the film is stunning, clear, and packed with many moments that are extremely creative (especially whenever the film goes back in time). It’s all a sight to experience.
The plot here at various times will seem slow, and some backstories may not carry a great impact at first. Upon my first viewing, I felt this entire film was just, well, weird. Having since walked away from the film, I’ve found myself thinking about the finer details surrounding its plot, and the more I thought about it, the more and more I discovered its true enjoyment. The chemistry on-screen between Tilda Swinton and Idris Elba is excellent, and the dialogue shared between the two feels natural and impacting.
Overall, as many would expect, performances from both Tilda Swinton and Idris Elba are tremendous, and the chemistry shared among the two is witty, heartfelt, and touching. Fans of Director George Miller will be divided, being either extremely pleased or highly shocked by this fantasy tale. As a film, it’s different to anything I’ve seen in cinemas for some time. It packs a journey that seems odd and weird and, perhaps, a little too out there. But the more I thought about this film afterwards and absorbed it, the more I admired the film for its high-level creativity, stunning visuals, deep dialogue, and cleverness. It’s not a masterpiece in my eyes, but it’s wonderful that this film will still resonate positively with most audiences, even if it takes some time to process afterwards.
7.0/10
31st August 2022
Written by Peter Walkden
WALKDEN ENTERTAINMENT
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