Three Thousand Years of Longing

Three Thousand Years of Longing

A lonely and bitter British woman discovers an ancient bottle while on a trip to Istanbul and unleashes a djinn who offers her three wishes. Filled with apathy, she is unable to come up with one until his stories spark in her a desire to be loved.

  • Released: 2022-08-24
  • Runtime: 108 minutes
  • Genre: Drama, Fantasy, Romance
  • Stars: Tilda Swinton, Idris Elba, Kaan Guldur, Ece Yüksel, Zerrin Tekindor, Erdil Yaşaroğlu, David Collins, Alyla Browne, Nicola Mouawad, Angie Tricker, Hayley Gia Hughes, Jason Jago, Seyithan Özdemir, Burcu Gölgedar, Berk Ozturk, Ogulcan Arman Uslu, Pia Thunderbolt, Matteo Bocelli, Lachy Hulme, Megan Gale, Jack Braddy, Aamito Lagum, Aiden Mckenzie, Aska Karem, Shakriya Tarinyawat, Hugo Vella, John Puckeridge-Webb, Anna Adams, James Dobbins Jones, Tendai Dzwairo, Randolph Fields, Amelia Patomaki, Sarah Houbolt, Callum Moran, Shane Miller, David Paulsen, Tahlia Crinis, Melissa Jaffer, Feride Eralp, Georgiou Thomas, Arshia Dehghani, Talia Tulin Sert, Melissa Kahraman, Nathan Susskind, Ronny Mouawad, Michelotti Edoardo, Prakash Paul, Sabrina Elba, Olivia Porter, Burwaiss Ahmed, Quaden Bayles, Botan Ozer
  • Director: George Miller
 Comments
  • frukuk - 2 June 2024
    Wordy and play-ful
    1. I enjoyed this. It was quite wordy, in a good way. Idris Elba was perfect as the Djinn. Dr Alithea Binnie, played by Tilda Swinton, was a wise woman who it was easy to care about. But it did feel more like a play than a film.

    2. I enjoyed this. It was quite wordy, in a good way. Idris Elba was perfect as the Djinn. Dr Alithea Binnie, played by Tilda Swinton, was a wise woman who it was easy to care about. But it did feel more like a play than a film.

    3. I enjoyed this. It was quite wordy, in a good way. Idris Elba was perfect as the Djinn. Dr Alithea Binnie, played by Tilda Swinton, was a wise woman who it was easy to care about. But it did feel more like a play than a film.
  • dr-virustr - 26 February 2024
    A Fantasy Filled with Inconsistencies Due to Malicious Oriental Perceptions
    Okay, this is a fantasy, and the author can invent nonsense as they please, but it might have been written with a clichéd, prejudiced orientalist mindset, perhaps even with pure malice and bitterness. Setting aside its careless attitudes towards all religions and its distorted understanding of Ottoman history aimed at overshadowing its greatness, it also exhibits a simple logical fallacy that reflects the mindset of its screenwriters: My friend, Istanbul encompasses 2-3 Londons, and yes, they have state-of-the-art technological communication devices, even the latest models :) . The jinn should have turned into fried potatoes in Istanbul before being bothered by the electromagnetic field in London.
  • gaijin-77282 - 19 November 2023
    Everything I Want In A Movie
    I gave this film a 10/10 rating because as the credits rolled, I was holding back the tears. That means I was both immersed and moved and that is a rare thing today.

    I always enjoy Tilda Swinton as she plays every role to perfection and, in this case, Idris Elba was a match made in heaven.

    I read a review where the movie was described as two people in bathrobes talking in a hotel room, with little action. Did the reviewer fall asleep? This was a movie with plenty of action, mostly centering around the djinn's tales of how he got to be where he was. These were beautifully filmed and, at times, graphic in their sexual and violent scenes.

    But most of all, the love story and Tilda Swinton's precise and measured narration were what moved me so much.

    A film like this does not come along very often. I urge you to try it.
  • Benjamin-M-Weilert - 21 December 2022
    A pretty good George Miller film that misses the storytelling mark.
    When I saw the posters for Three Thousand Years of Longing (2022) at my local movie theater, I couldn't easily figure out what it was about. A while later, I saw an article headline that told me that George Miller directed it, so I figured I'd give it a chance. I had seen no trailers or ads for it, but I figured the director of Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) and Happy Feet (2006) would have something interesting for me to see.

    I found it a little ironic that this movie about storytelling was meandering with its own storytelling. Granted, it had three millennia to cover in less than two hours, but the framing of it felt a little odd. There are so many in-between moments in the hotel room that could have been used to intersperse modern life with ancient tales. I will give credit here to the somewhat unique nature of the plot, as the movies about genies or djinn are so few as to be counted on a single hand. Dealing with magical beings who grant wishes is a topic that felt fresh and grounded in George Miller's hands.

    Visually, plenty of this movie is a treat. If you can get past some of the uncomfortable moments of nudity, that is. The ancient times covered in the Djinn's (Idris Elba) stories are filled with the fantastic and the grounded. Tying in lore from historical moments was a nice touch with just enough of a twist to make it interesting. Unfortunately, the chemistry between the two main characters didn't strike me as particularly strong. Considering that most of the movie is about their connection, this is probably why I didn't care for the "modern" moments of the film.

    A pretty good George Miller film that misses the storytelling mark, I give Three Thousand Years of Longing 3.5 stars out of 5.
  • kuarinofu - 28 November 2022
    Well, what is our life but stories and desires?
    Three Thousand Years of Longing (2022) is an interesting and original tale about tales, choices, people, fates and wishes. Wishes we crave, wishes we make for ourselves, and where deceptive desires can lead us. Consciously or not.

    The film packs quite a lot in terms of characterization, mainly by having lots of characters, with only some having actual substance and most of them being stereotypically stereotyped (intentionally, I guess). Probably this was done to show how simplictic humans can get even in they pretend to be overcomplicated.

    I don't know, this film is full of themes, there's literally so much the creators probably confused themselves while making it. I'm saying this because at some point it felt like they got consumed by all the variables and sides they wanted to cover. So they just let go and went full into it. Thus, tonally the film is all over the place. Again, sometimes intentionally, since some of the ideas are so miserable and depressing, you really need a funny moment to look away.

    I can go on and on about the different implications and senses, present in this film, but this will take too much time. Maybe try watching it for yourself and see what you'll get out of it. I was enjoyably confused by the end of it due to thematical overload, bizarre storytelling (which perfectly suits the film), and captivating performances. The visuals are also interesting since the more we progress into the stories, the more dreamlike becomes the "reality" (or current time).

    I'm glad I finally saw this film, and I'm confident that a second viewing will yield different results, so I'll give it some time and get back to it later.

    With all its flaws, it still felt like an experience, like a real film of which we don't have so many in these days of corporate products.
  • vaca_selenara90 - 19 November 2022
    Intersting concept but falls flat towards the second half
    Movie starts rather intersting, although the genie takes his sweet time narating his past (yes, naration on what the genie's been through is like 3 thirds of the movie), they are somewhat intersting and the visuals are pleasing (except that unnecessary greasy ham fest)

    But I had hoped (or rather wished) that this could lead somewhere, like, the genie would turn out to actually be evil or something and he's trying to trick the protagonist into making the wishes for an ultimate plot twist on his true intentions, towards the end of the movie.

    Really, anything would've been better than what we actually got. She wishes for him to love her? Really? So I guess he is free at the end but not quite because of her wish?

    Not to mention how out of the blue this is.

    First she seems like she doesn't want to be involved in his games, out of caution, then she's suddenly in love with him and wish for his love back? Umm what?

    Good visuals and somewhat fine first part of the movie are what made me grade it this high. Dont waste your time on this as I did.
  • orenh99 - 27 October 2022
    A surprisingly good, engrossing and interesting film.
    A film that is pleasantly surprising, engrossing and interesting.

    And I'm shocked it has such a low rating. I think those who have given it a low rating are only examining it on a surface level, There is a lot of depth to this film, Some of the scenes were very touching, it's filmed beautifully, it's written very well.

    Just a beautiful story, that will make you smile and cry at the end. I was mesmerized most of the time. The game is perfect, I will definitely being seeing it a few more times. I think you will be glad you did. What a wonderful way to spend a few hours, I was pleasantly surprised Shapo...