Carl Roberts 
“The Long Walk, despite changing and omitting some of the novel, is a brutal, uncompromising, and heartbreaking film. It hits home.”
The Long Walk is directed by Francis Lawrence and based on Stephen King’s 1979 novel. It features a cast including Cooper Hoffman, David Jonsson, Garrett Wareing, Tut Nyuot, and Charlie Plummer. In addition, Ben Wang, Roman Griffin Davis, Jordan Gonzalez, Josh Hamilton, Judy Greer, and Mark Hamill join the lineup. The film is walking into cinemas this Friday.
It tells of a dystopian United States ruled by a totalitarian regime. A group of young men enter an annual walking contest. In it, they must maintain a speed of at least three miles per hour or risk execution. The contest ends when only one walker remains alive. Can the film find its feet and become a box office success, or should it have never started walking towards cinemas?
PREMISE
A group of teenage boys competes in an annual contest called “The Long Walk,” where they must keep a specific walking speed. If they fail to do so, they face deadly consequences.
In the near future, when America has become a police state, one hundred boys are selected to enter an annual contest. The winner will be awarded whatever he wants for the rest of his life. The game is simple: maintain a steady walking pace of three miles per hour without stopping. Three warnings, and you’re out—permanently.
THOUGHTS
Fans of the original novel may be upset to know that some of the book’s elements and several aspects of it have been changed for the movie adaptation. For everyone else, prepare to go through an emotional wringer. The film is brutal and uncompromising. It also contains several shocking scenes that they won’t see coming. No spoilers, but there is no obscuring or pulling away from most of the events here. Several sequences will have the audience squirming in their seats, while others will have them reaching for the tissues. On many occasions, films of Stephen King’s works haven’t made for great movies. That isn’t so here. This is how a King novel should be adapted for the big screen. This is possibly one of the best adaptations yet. And I don’t say that lightly.
THE CAST
The story mainly concerns the relationship between David Jonsson as McVries and Cooper Hoffman as Garraty. Both actors are in brilliant and emotional form here. At every turn, we are rooting for the pair, despite knowing that only one, if successful, will win and survive. Both characters lean on the other for emotion and physical support, making them a superb pairing. As the boys fall one by one, McVries and Garraty continue on, knowing that one bad step could mean the end of their lives. Both Jonsson and Hoffman resonate with the audience. By the time the climax comes, we can’t help but choke up and tears well in our eyes. This emotional aspect of the film never fails to affect us, making the film richer than we expect.
Garrett Wareing as Stebbins (#38), Tut Nyuot as Arthur Baker (#6), Charlie Plummer as Gary Barkovitch (#5), Ben Wang as Hank Olson (#46), Roman Griffin Davis as Thomas Curley (#7), Jordan Gonzalez as Richard Harkness (#49), and Joshua Odjick as Collie Parker (#48) are the other main characters we follow. Some characters are focused on, sadly, more than others. We watch as these young men walk, stumble, and almost give up during the endurance they are experiencing.
FEELING SORROWFUL
We can’t help but feel sorrowful as several begin to fall, their bodies left bleeding on the road they have been walking. It is harrowing. emotional, and extremely sad. Judy Greer appears in essentially a cameo role as Garraty’s mother. Her performance is emotion-fueled, embodying a mother fearful she will never see her son alive again. All of these and many more members of the cast give highly charged performances that land at every turn.
MARK HAMILL
Mark Hamill is the villain of the piece as the sadistic leader of the secret police force, known simply as The Major. Hamill’s performance is far removed from the hero types we are used to seeing him play. At many times, we can detect almost a reprise of his vocals as The Joker in the Batman: The Animated Series show. However, it works and fits the character perfectly. Hamill is at his most sadistic here, playing a man who truly believes what he is doing is right, that he isn’t wrong, or sadistic or evil.
Of course, this kind of megalomaniac behaviour makes him a despicable human being to everyone else but himself and his troops. When one boy falls, he uses it evilly as something for the rest of the walkers to celebrate, to honour as they walk. Hamill delivers possibly one of the best villainous performances of the year, if not his career.
WRITING AND DIRECTION
The screenplay by JT Mollner is exemplary. As I said previously, several plotlines and events in the film have been omitted or have been changed. But, for me, these changes don’t dilute the drama and horror we see on the screen. This adaptation will go down in history as possibly one of the best. Mollner doesn’t dial down the violence, drama, bloodshed and emotion. If anything, his writing elevates it. It has heart, a narrative that doesn’t fail to strike us in almost every department and emotion. By the time the credits roll at the end, we can’t help but admire what Mollner has accomplished here.
Francis Lawrence’s direction is assured. Lawrence is a dab hand at bringing best-selling novels to the screen, with his adaptations of The Hunger Games books and now here. With this film, he excels himself. He has created a world that looks recognisable while also being something downright frightening and alien to us. The way he directs proceedings and his actors cannot be understated. The way he frames his shots, not shying away from the horror and the bloodshed, adds another layer to what we are seeing. While the film isn’t a horror film per se, Lawrence gives us enough to horrify us throughout.
VERDICT
With a brilliant and fitting score from Jeremiah Fraites, The Long Walk, despite changing and omitting some of the novel, is a brutal, uncompromising, and heartbreaking film. It hits home. It never fails to shock us with its brutality, nor does it fail to sadden us with the emotion it contains. As the cast begins to thin out, we are aware that any one of them could be next to fall at any time. This adds to the tension the film contains and evokes in us. We can’t help but feel scared for the boys we see on screen. Watching as they are mercilessly executed if they make an infraction of the rules terrifies us. Knowing that they know the stakes at hand and have allowed themselves to be put in this position sickens us.
We can’t help but be repulsed as, one by one, each walker’s dreams and aspirations, the reason for participating, are violently cut short by a bullet from a carbine. We are shocked as their lives are unceremoniously ended without mercy or remorse. By the time we reach the climax, we are frightened about how it all will end, how it will be resolved. With the emotional journey the film has led us on, we don’t know whether we will be relieved or deeply saddened. With great performances from all the cast, excellent writing and direction, and enough heart to fill two movies, The Long Walk is a rarity.
THOUGHT-PROVOKING ENTERTAINMENT
It may not be the ideal Friday night entertainment or the most comfortable watch, but it is a piece of thought-provoking entertainment that sticks with us long after we have left the cinema. This is undoubtedly one of the better adaptations of King’s novels, one that will stand the test of time. Make sure you’re prepared for what the film will put you through. Don’t forget to take tissues, you’ll need them. And prepare for The Long Walk out of the cinema after the film has ended.
The Long Walk will open in cinemas on Friday, courtesy of Lionsgate.
Introducing Carl! As the News Editor at Future of the Force, Carl has been an invaluable member of our team since early 2016. His expertise and dedication have made him an integral part of our editorial staff. Beyond his professional role, Carl is a fervent supporter of Liverpool F.C. and an avid follower of pop culture. He has a deep passion for Halloween, Friday the 13th, and the iconic movie franchises Star Wars and Star Trek.
He can be found either at his neighborhood cinema, enjoying the latest releases on the big screen, or at home streaming the newest blockbuster movies.
