A group of teenage boys compete in an annual contest known as “The Long Walk,” where they must maintain a certain walking speed or get shot.
Stephen King wrote “The Long Walk” in the mid-60s during his freshman year of college. His first novel remained unpublished until December 1978, when it was released under his pseudonym, Richard Bachman. Unlike his first published work, “Carrie,” which has had numerous screen adaptations, “The Long Walk” is a novel whose film production has been stuck in development hell for several decades — perhaps because it has always been a tough sell on screen.
The movie, directed by Francis Lawrence (who helmed “The Hunger Games” franchise starting with “Catching Fire”), is the first adaptation. Lawrence is an understandable choice: both stories focus on young adults sent to their deaths in hopes of winning support for their struggling families. While “The Hunger Games” films have a sense of urgency, “The Long Walk” frequently feels flat and hollow.
The premise is simple. Each year in King’s dystopia, fifty young men volunteer to walk, keeping a pace of 3 miles per hour. Anyone who slows down or veers off the path is given a warning. After three warnings, the contestant is executed on the spot by soldiers under the command of The Major (Mark Hamill), a character who isn’t as menacing as the filmmakers intended. The walk continues until there is one survivor, who earns wealth and one wish. Although the plot is inherently tense, the finished film is tensionless and often repetitive.
Unfortunately, Lawrence doesn’t spend much time world-building; he offers a brief epistolary prologue before rushing the film’s protagonist, Ray Garraty (Cooper Hoffman), to the starting line. The film’s set design, while giving a timelessness to the proceedings, doesn’t offer much help. This could be happening anywhere, at any time. In a way, it’s also similar to “The Hunger Games” — at least as far as costume design goes.
Ray becomes fast friends with a few of the guys — Peter McVries (David Jonsson), Arthur Baker (Tut Nyuot), and Hank Olson (Ben Wang). It’s unconvincing, considering the life-or-death stakes. Tensions with the other contestants also arise as they wait. It’s not clear how much these boys know about the competition they’ve volunteered for. The script can’t make up its mind whether these characters are naive kids or hardened competitors. If they all know they face death, why are some so eager to make friends? Do some know more than others?
Lawrence over-relies on the camaraderie between the guys. If you’re not able to buy into that, you’re going to have a real hard time with the rest of the movie. Ray, Peter, Arthur, and Hank joke around and converse, frequently encouraging each other. For what reason? It all feels pointless. Wang is especially unconvincing in his role, often overplaying his dialogue. Jonsson fares the best of the group, offering the most authenticity, though at times he struggles to make things believable.
The camera keeps a steady pace with the contestants, offering very little of visual interest. While competently handled, the film relies on monotonous close-ups and medium shots. It feels like we are suffering through this walk with them, for all the wrong reasons. After decades in the drawing room, Lawrence proves why the film should have stayed there. What should be a tense and gripping story has instead become a lifeless slog, more akin to watching paint dry. My advice: skip it.
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