The second Idris Elba film in a couple of weeks arrives on the big screen in the shape of Three Thousand Years of Longing. He plays The Djinn, a genie, who is accidentally unleashed by Alithea Binnie (Tilda Swinton), a lonely British woman, after buying his bottle in an Istanbul bazaar.
Despite the talent on screen, this is being marketed as a George Miller movie after his success in rebooting his Mad Max franchise. I do not expect this to light up the box office in the same way. The opening stages, introducing Alithea and then her initial meeting with The Djinn work really well. The pair have a great dynamic and Swinton is excellent throughout.
However, the bulk of the film involves the three previous instances when The Djinn was released. Unfortunately, they are increasingly meandering and uninteresting.
Back with Alithea, things improve, including a couple of very amusing scenes with her racist neighbours. After that, though, Miller strives for a deeper meaning and the film fizzles out.
Rating: 5 out of 10