The Long Walk is brutal. It’s not for the faint of heart. It can be violent, disgusting, and incredibly hard to watch. But if you do watch, you’ll be rewarded with a surprisingly beautiful, nuanced, human story. One that’s about friendship, hope, life, love, family, and everything in between. The Long Walk is a horror movie for sure, but it’s got a massive, massive heart too.
Based on one of the earliest novels by a little-known author named Richard Bachman (most know him by his real name, Stephen King), The Long Walk has an incredibly simple setup. In an undefined, vaguely dystopian version of the United States, there’s an annual televised competition where one young man from each state must walk until only one remains. That’s it. You walk. There are a few other rules, like maintaining a specific speed and a limited number of warnings, but the last man standing is given untold riches and one wish. Whatever they want.
That’s enough to get every single eligible person in the country to apply every year, but we follow Ray, played by Cooper Hoffman (Licorice Pizza). Ray, like most of the other men walking, is doing so for personal reasons. Some of those reasons are revealed early on, others are revealed later, but each provides a unique perspective on the outlook, character, and the world at large. Quickly, Ray bonds with Pete, played by David Jonsson (Alien: Romulus), and together with a few other participants, friendships continue to grow.
One of the most fascinating things about The Long Walk is its inevitability. We know, as do the characters, that almost everyone is going to die. They have to die; otherwise, no one wins. So the more invested we become in the characters, their quirks, and their relationships, the more stressful it becomes to watch. That’s only intensified by the film’s brutal violence, which makes full use of the R-rating. The film feels like a vice grip slowly and continuously squeezing you with agonizing anticipation.
This is thanks to director Francis Lawrence, who is no stranger to movies about kids dying for sport on TV. He directed the last four Hunger Games movies (as well as the upcoming one), so he knows a little something about balancing a large cast of characters while mixing in humanity and dread. Here, though, it’s even more powerful. Thanks to the simplistic setup and visuals throughout, Lawrence uses every immersive filmmaking trick in the book to make the experience feel engrossing. For example, as Ray and Pete have a philosophical conversation in the foreground, we’re engulfed by the various sounds of the walk in the background. Soldiers calling out warnings. Gunshots. Tripping. Defecation. Each moment brings the participants closer to death and adds another layer of terrifying tension.
It would be hard to feel that tension without characters you care about, and The Long Walk gives us those in every role. Plus, it doesn’t hurt that two leads, played by Hoffman and Jonsson, give career-changing, star-making performances. Before this film, most fans knew them as merely talented actors. Hoffman wowed in Paul Thomas Anderson’s Licorice Pizza as well as Jason Reitman’s Saturday Night, while Jonsson stood out in Alien: Romulus as well as Rye Lane. After The Long Walk, though, each has taken their craft to a whole new level. Their performances are so beautiful, so relatable, and so sad that as the film gets closer and closer to the ending, you’d be hard-pressed not to cry at the mere thought of losing either, or both, of these characters. Each actor was a star before, but now they’re superstars.
They’re then joined by an equally wonderful supporting cast. Mark Hamill plays the film’s main antagonist, the Major, who is in control of the walk. He plays completely against type as being the most despicable, evil character he’s played in a long time. Yes, including the Joker. Among the other actors, Karate Kid Legends star Ben Wong is one standout with his New York-inspired comedic turn, while Garrett Wareing, Charlie Plummer, Tut Nyuot, and Joshua Odjick all turn in excellent, grounded performances, too.
In the end, though, The Long Walk works mostly because we are so enthralled by Ray and Pete. Through them, we explore what is right and wrong about this world, as well as all the burning questions you have about the logistics of the walk. We see the full life of a friendship, one that is always under this cloud of terror. As a result, as things get closer to the end, the film becomes just as devastating as you can imagine, if not more so.
We don’t think The Long Walk will find much of a life at the box office simply because it’s just so hard to watch. But those who see it, and we recommend you do, won’t be able to stop thinking or talking about it. It’s a unique, well-made film that lives up to its Stephen King roots. It opens September 12.
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