“Long Walk” is as moving as it is brutal

Stephen King is primarily known for writing horror, but upon examining his career, it becomes clear that he has also dabbled in other genres. "Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption" is probably the most popular example. This past summer, "The Life of Chuck," another non-horror King adaptation, was released. The man knows more than just horror. 

Based on the 1979 novel, "The Long Walk" is set in a dystopian alternate version of America, where every year, a young man from each state is chosen to walk until only one remains. 

This movie is brutal. If any of the walkers falls behind the mandatory pace, they are shot. The survivor will receive a substantial amount of money and one wish. They all view this as a means to escape poverty and achieve a better life. They might volunteer for this walk, but when this is your only escape, do you really have a choice? The movie does not show every person who dies, but the ones it chooses to depict can be shocking and reiterate how brutal and unforgiving this world is. 

The core of this movie is the relationship between Garrety (Cooper Hoffman) and McVries (David Jonsson). They form a doomed friendship early on. Both know that for one of them to win, the other has to die, but they put that aside for a sense of camaraderie and brotherhood (as fleeting as they know it is). McVriers says that they are in control of how they spend their last hours. They can spend them as competitors trying to sabotage each other or as friends helping and rooting for one another. Even in a bleak movie like this, we can see the best of humanity. 

Later this year, we will have another non-horror Stephen King adaptation, "The Running Man," which is set in a bleak world where death is entertainment. If that is as good as the last few King adaptations, then I say, keep them coming. 

8./10

Rated R for strong bloody violence, grisly images, suicide, pervasive language, and sexual references.

1h 48m