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“The Long Walk” is a dystopian movie based on the first novel that Stephen King wrote when he was 19 years old. The book wasn’t released until 1979 under King’s pseudonym Richard Backman. Francis Lawrence, who is best known for directing “The Hunger Games” movies is at the helm here, so this genre of movie isn’t anything new to him, but “The Long Walk” certainly is much bleaker than “The Hunger Games” series.
The movie is about the state of the country after a terrible war that took place decades earlier. The country is in a severe economic depression. The solution? A military figure named The Major, played by an over-the-top Mark Hammil, has created a contest where one person from each state (50 total) is chosen by a lottery. They are then forced to walk until they are no longer able to continue at a three miles per hour pace.
If a contestant can’t maintain the pace, he is executed in frequently brutal fashion by one of the military personnel following the walkers in a jeep. The last person left standing is granted any wish they desire and a large cash prize.
The anchors of the movie are Ray and Peter played by Cooper Hoffman and David Jonsson. They form a bond at the start of the movie that strengthens as they walk across the mostly barren country. There are several supporting characters that do a good job of supporting Hoffman and Jonsson on screen. Curly (Roman Griffin Davis), who looks way too young to be forced into this predicament, is terrified, Hank (Ben Wang) tries to keep the atmosphere light by telling jokes, and Barkovitch (Charlie Plummer,” who is filled with rage.
The only character that really gets flushed out is Ray, as we learn about his relationship with his mom on screen and his backstory and why he is in the contest through some flashback scenes. Other than that, the background of the contestants is kept a mystery, but that doesn’t hurt the movie as the dialog between the actors as they walk and the friendship that develops between Ray and Peter shine.
The movie is dialog driven and compelling to watch. The killings are shocking at first, but that wears off as the group of 50 is dwindled down. Although, perhaps that’s the message the movie is trying to send with all of the executions.
It’s the relationships that Ray and Peter build with the other contestants that keeps the movie going. Ray is always supportive of the other characters when they begin to falter and Peter often provides comfort and support to the group when things are looking bleak.
Aside from their performances, as the number of walkers left dwindles from 50 down to single digits, The movie becomes more and more bleak. Eventually the script collapses and what the viewer is left with is a very sad and sobering viewing experience with no chance of hope for the future. The script seems to promise one thing and deliver another. I’m not against that in every case, but in this one, the departure from what is expected is extremely grim and illogical. I haven’t disliked a script this much since “No Country For Old Men.”
Overall score: (4.0) – Despite the strong character work from Hoffman and Jonsson in “The Long Walk,” the negativity of the story overshadows the positive elements of the film. Hoffman and Jonsson are two potential future leading men and they are great in their roles in this film. The main issue is that the script collapses down the stretch and makes you wonder why someone would choose to build towards something so grim.
ATTENTION: “The Long Walk” is now available on Digital, Blu-ray, and DVD. A 4K UHD combo will also be available on December 23.
Contact Sean at pwtorchsean@gmail.com. Follow im on X: @SR_torch and BluSky: @SeanRadican
Watch the official “The Long Walk” trailer below:
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