Three Thousand Years of Longing (2022)
Three Thousand Years of Longing (2022) is a fantasy romance film directed by George Miller, starring Tilda Swinton and Idris Elba. The film follows Alithea Binnie (Swinton), a lonely and intellectual academic specializing in storytelling, who is attending a conference in Istanbul. During her stay, she buys a mysterious old bottle, which, when opened, releases a Djinn (Elba).
The Djinn offers Alithea three wishes in exchange for his freedom, but she is skeptical and reluctant to make any wishes. As the Djinn shares his long and complicated past with her, recounting the numerous times he has been trapped in a bottle and his experiences with humans over the centuries, Alithea begins to reflect on her own life and desires.
The Djinnβs stories explore love, loss, and the passage of time, revealing the weight of the wishes he has granted and the consequences they had on those who made them.
Despite her initial reluctance, Alithea slowly opens up to the possibility of making a wish, but she grapples with the idea of whether it is wise to change her life or if the price of getting what she desires would be too high.
The film explores themes of longing, isolation, and the choices we make in life, blending magical realism with emotional introspection.
As Alitheaβs story unfolds, the boundaries between reality and fantasy blur, leading to a heartfelt and philosophical conclusion about love, regret, and the complexity of human desires.
