The Long Walk: A Deep Allegory on the Walk of Life
The Long Walk symbolizes the politics, pain, and joy that come with life’s journey
On the surface, The Long Walk sounds like a simple story; in a dystopian ‘70s era America, young men from each state volunteer to enter an annual walking event. The rules are pretty simple, keep walking at a least 3mph until the last person is standing. If you fall behind or break the rules, you will be executed on spot. The last person walking is given a cash prize and one granted wish.
I’ll be honest, I had little interest in seeing this film when I first heard about it. “This seems a bit too similar to Hunger Games,” is what I initially thought. I was pleasantly surprised to see that The Long Walk does have some similarities to The Hunger Games stories (although the novel version was written first by Stephen King in 1979), but it stands strong as its own original story rich with symbolism and thought-provoking messages.
Lionsgate
How Was the Movie?
This Stephen King survival thriller is a very good watch. It is packed full of moments that will make you laugh, gasp, and even cry. Just about everything that you fear could possibly happen during such a grueling competition essentially does happen. You see the boys get exhausted, hurt, and even sick, yet they keep pushing their limits to continue the endless walk.
You will find yourself questioning, “could I do this…would I do this?” The more you watch the film, the more you will realize that you have already been doing your own version of this walk in some way or another. We have all experienced joy, pain, trauma in our own individual walks of life; and even in those times that we desperately want to give up, we don’t. The Long Walk will make you reflect on what makes us keep pushing despite an inevitable end.
Lionsgate
Best Parts About the Movie?
The Diversity:
I absolutely loved that the boys were all from different backgrounds and cultures. This added so much to the “different walks of life” concept while giving a strong visual representation of it. This also helped to highlight both the similarities and differences between the competitors, who knew nothing about one another, except the fact that they wanted something so bad that they were all willing to sign their lives away for it.
The Realism:
If it’s one thing that makes this film stand out from The Hunger Games it’s the realistic violence. Don’t get me wrong, Hunger Games gets the point across well enough but The Long Walk doesn’t shy from it one bit. The R rating is completely necessary. There’s quite a bit of graphic gore and violence to the point that I turned my head away a few times. This helps the viewer to understand just how brutal this competition is, and it’s not a “walk in the park,” for these boys; it indeed gets quite ugly.
The Symbolism:
As I mentioned earlier, this story is full of symbolism. You can connect it to our own individual lives, of course, but there's also connections to mental health, human connections, and politics. In all honesty, it’s frightening to see the similarities to modern times. I can only hope that we are not looking forward to a similar future, as we currently live in what the characters refer to as the “before times.”
Lionsgate
Is This Movie for You?
If you are drawn to films that make you reflect on life, such as myself, then you will enjoy this movie. It can be very brutal and sad at moments, but there's also so many touching moments to look forward to. Stephen King has a royal last name for a reason, he simply doesn’t miss. His classic novel has now been adapted into a classic film that will have people analyzing and interpreting this beautifully painful for years to come.
Lionsgate