Genie-in-a-bottle film earns rave reviews
‘Three Thousand Years of Solitude,’ starring Tilda Swinton and Idris Elba, opens 14 September
Daily Tribune‘Three Thousand Years of Solitude,’ starring Tilda Swinton and Idris Elba, opens 14 September
Tilda Swinton stars in 3000 Years of Longing. | PHOTOGRAPHS COURTESY OF FB/3000 YEARS OF LONGING
Three Thousand Years of Longing was hailed by critics as a "visual feast" — greeted by a six-minute standing ovation at its world premiere at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival.
It is directed by George Miller of Babe, Pig in the City, Happy Feet and Mad Max: The Road Warrior fame.
Adapted from the short story The Djinn in the Nightingale's Eye by A.S. Byatt, the fantasy movie takes off as British scholar Dr. Alithea Binnie (Tilda Swinton) travels to Istanbul for a conference.
While looking for a souvenir, she finds herself strangely drawn to a file of trinkets and accidentally finds a beautiful memento — unaware the relic will change her life forever.
A mythical djinn or genie (Idris Elba) appears, saying he's been trapped in the relic and offers Dr. Binnie three wishes in exchange for his freedom.
The movie has earned positive reviews.
Slashfilm.com: "This movie reaffirms George Miller as one of the great magicians of cinema working today."
Awardsdaily.com: "A mythical extravaganza that packs an unexpected humanistic punch."
Ign.com: "Miller revitalizes Arabian Nights with a technological twist… while Tilda Swinton and Idris Elba give it their all."
Idris told Yahoo News: "I think the biggest challenge was always (being) conscious that the audience has seen some version of this character, albeit a cartoon version or some comical version. I was really conscious for this character to be believable and relatable and interesting to watch. It's got to be less than that (comical style) and something unique."
Swinton said: "We were actually talking about this film for several years before we started shooting. As time went by, the more relevant I thought this film was going to be. People know more about being locked in a bottle for three thousand years than they might have three years ago. They also know what it's like to be locked down in their own homes."
From Go Asia Entertainment, Three Thousand Years of Longing opens in cinemas nationwide on 14 September.
