From the highly anticipated adaptation of master storyteller Stephen King's first-written novel, and Francis Lawrence, the visionary director of The Hunger Games franchise films, comes The Long Walk, an intense, chilling, and emotional thriller that challenges audiences to confront a haunting question: how far could you go?
The Long Walk has, no pun intended, been a long time coming. Filmmakers like George A. Romero and Frank Darabont have previously taken a crack at the material, but Lawrence is the first to get it over the finish line.
The first reviews for the movie have now been counted, but can it avoid being another disappointing King adaptation, similar to recent bombs like The Dark Tower, Pet Sematary: Bloodlines, and Firestarter? Well, the movie's Rotten Tomatoes score certainly suggests so.
23 verdicts have been counted as we write this, and The Long Walk sits at an impressive 96%. The only negative review comes from Beyond the Trailer's Grace Randolph, who writes, "Stuck in the 1970s - when the original book was written - with the societal and political commentary of a student rather than a professional. Hamill is totally wasted, Jonsson does the best he can, and Hoffman makes for a very bland lead actor. Boring."
Other reviews praise the "incredible performances," hailing it as "one of the great Stephen King adaptations" that "easily [stands] shoulder-to-shoulder with the very best entries in the author's cinematic canon."
King has authored a long list of classic books. However, outside of a few exceptions, most have been poorly handled during the transition from page to screen. It's great to see The Long Walk join the ranks of those that have been successes (IT and The Shining, for example), and we now wait to see whether these reviews will lead to strong ticket sales.
The Long Walk's cast features Cooper Hoffman, David Jonsson, Garrett Wareing, Tut Nyuot, Charlie Plummer, Ben Wang, Roman Griffin Davis, Jordan Gonzalez, Joshua Odjick, Josh Hamilton, with Judy Greer, and Mark Hamill.
Lawrence directs The Long Walk from a screenplay by JT Mollner (Strange Darling), while Roy Lee, Steven Schneider, Francis Lawrence, and Cameron MacConomy produce.
The Long Walk arrives in theaters on September 12.