Stephen King‘s The Long Walk journey from book to big screen adaptation was a long one (pun intended). Some of the most well-known filmmakers were involved in the film adaptation throughout the years. The names include Steven Spielberg, George A. Romero, Rob Reiner, and Frank Darabont. But turning a book about teenagers walking and swearing and then getting brutally killed isn’t something that screams box office success. Now, 46 years after the book’s publication, a film version is finally hitting the big screens.

Set in an alternate America where the country has survived a second civil war and government forces are determined to use such disorder to maintain control, sharing warnings about an impending economic collapse. To help boost morale in the country, an annual Long Walk contest is held, bringing young men together to begin a televised test of stamina, with the weakest shot where they stand if they can’t keep up with the pack. The contest ends when there’s one person left, and the grand prize is a huge sum of money, and the winner also gets a wish.

Raymond Garraty (Cooper Hoffman) decided to enter the contest, frightening his mother (Judy Greer), who understands what’s coming for her son. Joined by Peter (David Jonsson), Stebbins (Garrett Wareing), Gary (Charlie Plummer), Hank (Ben Wang), and numerous other contestants, Raymond is determined to win the whole thing, driven by a secret desire to do something momentous with his wish. The person in charge of the contest is The Major (Mark Hamill), a man who’s not afraid to eliminate those who fail to inhabit the American spirit. There’s not much of a plot besides getting to know each of the main characters, and then we see them die a painful death one by one.

Screenwriter JT Mollner stays very close to King’s novel. It was never mentioned, but the story took place in the late 1970s, around the time the book was published. He did make a few changes to the book. Instead of 100 people, the film reduced the contestants to 50, and they are in their early 20s, whereas in the book, they were teenagers. For the most part, I thought Mollner did a good job with the adaptation. I wish he would expand the story for the screen. Just like in the book, we don’t know much about how this contest got started. One thing I did not like was how he changed the ending. While both the book and film’s endings were bleak, I thought the film version was too Hollywood. The book’s ending was kind of brilliant to me. To be honest, I was kind of angry about how the film ended compared to the book. It didn’t really make sense to me, and the climax felt rushed. I wonder if they did go with the book’s ending and changed their minds and shot this version.

Even though I wasn’t too pleased with the script, director Francis Lawrence did a good job of moving things along. It’s not easy making a movie about people talking and then getting brutally executed. According to reports, Stephen King insisted that the kills must be as brutal as they were in the book. So, Lawrence didn’t skim on the violence. Also, shout out to the excellent score by Jeremiah Fraites.

The performances by the actors were fine. It appears Cooper has inherited some acting gift from his late father, Phillip Seymour Hoffman. I know that some critics and fans have been praising David Jonsson’s performances in the couple of films that he appeared in. He’s good here, but I wouldn’t call his performance anything special.

I’m a big fan of the King’s novel and I’ve been waiting to see a film version for a long time. While I thought the filmmakers did a good job with this adaptation, the ending really pissed me off. They should’ve gone with the book’s ending. But if you’re a fan of Stephen King or have read the book, you might enjoy it. The story is quite relevant in our current political mess, especially in this country.

So, have you seen THE LONG WALK? Well, what do you think?

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