MELBOURNE UNIVERSITY FILM INQUIRER

Three Thousand Years of Longing is the latest entry into George Miller’s perennially compelling oeuvre. Miller’s authorial style is reputably imprinted onto this maximalist cinematic fairy-tale, creating a film that is as visually rich as it is pleasingly indulgent. By no means will it win over the populous in the same way that Mad Max: Fury Road, or Happy Feet, did, but Three Thousand Years of Longing is just as provocative and enthralling as anything Miller and his collaborators have produced. 

In sum, the story follows academic narratologist and recluse Dr. Alithea Binnie (Tilda Swinton) as she attends a conference in Istanbul, where by chance she also discovers a Djinn (Idris Elba) who will grant her three wishes in return for his freedom. Alithea, a self-proclaimed imaginator, is sceptical of the Djinn’s existence, as well as his requests for wish-making, well aware of the many cautionary tales of wish-granting throughout history. The film then unravels into various flashback sequences from the Djinn as he shares his story in an attempt for Alithea to trust him and consequently set him free, a collage of themes and narrative conventions shining through in the weaving between past and present. Based off A.S. Byatt’s titular short story in her 1994 collection The Djinn in the Nightingale’s Eye, this is fantasy that feels very modern in some of its concerns and contentions. And a film totally enthralled by the nature of story-telling, as all good fairy-tales are. 

In craft, Three Thousand Years of Longing is as reliable as they come.  Swinton and Elba’s acting is superb, nothing less than what would be hoped for from such a formidable duo, who are perfectly matched for not only each other but Miller’s direction as well. Miller’s sense for worldbuilding is not lost here, and the visual effects and cinematography are as stunning as you may expect from a film of his. Each shot (especially in the Djinn’s flashbacks) is geometrically decadent, holding a richness in colour and form which maximises the visual pleasure on offer. In its unabashed style and structure, a sincerity is found and celebrated, for what else is the purpose of story-telling? It is for this reason however that it’s hard to imagine Three Thousand Years of Longing as a crowd pleaser. A small price to pay for a film which should age as well as a Djinn in a bottle for three thousand years… that is to say, very well. 

So what the hell is this film really about? Without going into spoilers, I think that it is fair to say that Three Thousand Years of Longing is somewhat open-ended, albeit clear in its interests. That is simply the nature of a modern fairy-tale, where realities are obscure, but themes and morals are literal and of arguably greater importance. In this one lies a tale of solitude and companionship, and the thin opposition between having nothing and having everything; such is the cautionary irony of being presented with three wishes. But it also takes these themes and implants them in the current climate of technological ubiquity, which is both silent and loud at every minute of every day. This presents perhaps the essential fairy-tale moral of our modern life: despite being connected in ways no one has been before, we have also never been as separate. On this basis it is unsurprising that the film’s protagonist, Alithea, is a recluse, and an academic of stories, for stories (and content) always have been, and continue to be, the mediators of our connection to others. The result of these various philosophies and ideologies is a film rich in curiosity and concern. And as such, if your concerns are aligned with Miller’s, then I daresay this film will tend to your mind and heart. 

I left the theatre into what seemed like an unknown world, both like and unlike the semi-literal and semi-fantastical one I had just departed, emboldened by moral contradictions and rich colours. Affecting films and stories have a habit of skewing your perspective of reality like that, and Three Thousand Years of Longing is no exception.

Three Thousand Years of Longing can currently be found at the Melbourne International Film Festival (running from August 4th until the 21st in cinemas), with the final round of tickets for any sessions on standby to be released at 5:00 pm the day before each session. A wide theatrical release will follow in September. Interested in writing a review of anything? Just send us an email.