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S3:E8 The Long Walk (2025 Film)
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We’re closing out Stephen King month with The Long Walk. Written under his Richard Bachman pen name, this story takes us on a relentless, unsettling journey where survival comes down to every single step. In this episode, we dive into the book, its brand-new movie adaptation, and the fascinating legacy behind one of King’s earliest works.
Hosted by Lindsey with co-hosts Crystal and Keri.
Links to Books & Adaptations Discussed in this Episode:
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Question of the Episode:
- Now that we’ve explored more of his works, have your opinions changed on what your favorite King adaptation is?
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Thanks for listening to Based on a Book—see you in the next chapter!
Chapters:
(00:00) Introductions
(01:31) Ratings and Non-Spoiler Discussion
(11:15) Book vs Movie Breakdown (SPOILERS)
(52:22) Final Verdict
(53:13) Question of the Episode
Recommended
Transcript
Introduction and Focus on 'The Long Walk'
00:00:08
Speaker
based on a book. The podcast that keeps moving forward, step by step, breaking down the stories that test how far we'll go. I'm Lindsay, and I exist, therefore I am.
00:00:20
Speaker
I'm Crystal, and five days after seeing this movie, I'm still not sure how I feel about it. I'm Carrie, and I'm still exhausted after this one. And all month long, we've been diving into the dark, twisted, and unforgettable works of Stephen King.
00:00:37
Speaker
And today, we've reached our grand finale. This is our last adaptation and episode for Stephen King Month, and we're going out with a heavy hitter, The Long Walk.
Plot Overview of 'The Long Walk'
00:00:49
Speaker
Written under King's pen name, Richard Bachman, this dystopian story drops us into a chilling competition where 100 teenage boys are chosen for a brutal march and With only one winner and one unthinkable prize.
00:01:07
Speaker
So it's part psychological psychological thriller, part meditation on endurance. The Long Walk is one of King's earliest works, but it still packs a punch with its mix of surprise, survival, and humanity.
00:01:22
Speaker
So that's the setup for The Long Walk. A story that's both simple in concept and deeply unsettling in execution. But before we actually get into comparisons with the new movie adaptation, let's start with our ratings.
Ratings and Personal Opinions
00:01:40
Speaker
I want to know how The Long Walk measured up for each of us, starting with Crystal. I knew you'd start with me. i i I know that this is one of those stories that was inspired by what was it, the Greek myth of the Minotaur.
00:02:06
Speaker
And a lot of people talk about this being like, this is where the Hunger Games came from. kind of, no, but whatevs. I... i was interested in this and kind of excited to read it a little terrified but i sadly i found it like boring if that it just yeah people talk about like lord of the rings all they did was walk everywhere and that's kind of how i felt about this one like there were moments where i was deeply troubled there were moments where i was deeply affected but
00:02:42
Speaker
Also, there were moments where it was just boring to me. And so I give it two canteens.
00:02:52
Speaker
Right? I feel super conflicted about this one. Because i Okay, so I gave it three warnings. And I... I honestly, genuinely, really liked the concept of the story.
00:03:13
Speaker
I found it kind of impactful to me, important, and it like was very memorable to me. i was going through like an entire rollercoaster of emotions with these characters.
Adaptations and Directors
00:03:32
Speaker
I like a character-driven story, and this is definitely a character-driven story in my opinion. Absolutely. So that is like my bread and butter. like That's my favorite thing. But I have this very conflicted feeling with it because there's a lot of issues with it that I feel needs to be acknowledged.
00:03:53
Speaker
I mean, Stephen King wrote this, you know, in the late 60s, I believe. This was, like you said, his very first story that he wrote. So I think he was like, not the very first story that was published, but the very first story that he wrote.
00:04:09
Speaker
I think he was like 19 at the time. at the time And with his early works, he writes in the male perspective. And a lot of times from the a young boy's point of view.
00:04:25
Speaker
in it's extremely vulgar and unfiltered. And from my research, since I haven't read the rest of the Bachman books, um the Bachman books is a representation of his most unfiltered.
00:04:42
Speaker
And his most vulgar, to the point of being his most angry, like in the book Rage, where he actually doesn't even publish that title anymore due to its content. And I personally never run away from unfiltered material.
00:04:56
Speaker
i don't mind it. i always... enjoy dark material and dark stuff, give it a chance. But sometimes it hits and sometimes it doesn't. And this one just like struck a bit of a nerve for me.
00:05:12
Speaker
So I think just like a lot of the content, like the misogyny, the racism in it Just really. Just unsettled me in this one.
00:05:24
Speaker
But that being said. I am very excited to talk about the movie. Because I feel very differently about the movie. And enjoy what they
Descriptive Writing and Visual Adaptations
00:05:32
Speaker
did with it. And the things that they changed about it.
00:05:34
Speaker
and So. That's why I feel very conflicted. Yeah. No that's totally fair. I mean they're generations apart. So. yep Yeah. For sure. There's definitely a different tone there.
00:05:46
Speaker
I gave this one. Three and a half miles. And I agree with both of you. Especially with like. It's a very long story. And it had me in the first half.
00:06:01
Speaker
Considering it's a short story too. Like it's considered a short story in the Bachman books. Right. And kind of started losing it. Losing it about halfway through. Yeah. So yeah.
00:06:15
Speaker
It's good story. Good concept. I like that much of it. just a lot of walking. It's a lot of walking. I mean, I know that's the point, but damn.
00:06:26
Speaker
and I was exhausted from reading it. so It's like so much walking and talk, just like internal thoughts and feelings about, mostly about the main character, but, and their relationship that he builds with the other characters that he's...
00:06:45
Speaker
And what he learned with and what he learns about them. And lots of like flashbacks, which are important to, you know, for the character development, but also don't really feel like they drive the story.
00:06:59
Speaker
So it was just kind of like, okay, come on. Where we like, we got to keep going. Yeah. And then going back to Carrie's point with it, having been written in like the sixties, um,
00:07:12
Speaker
George A. Romero was first attached to direct a film adaptation of The Long Walk in 1988. huh And then in the mid-2000s, Frank Darabont, who directed Shawshank Redemption and Green Mile, bought the rights for the novel.
00:07:29
Speaker
And he was going to make a film. And then after many years, no progress, the rights lapsed. So... Here we are, 2025. We've got an adaptation from Francis Lawrence, who also directed The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, Mockingjay Parts 1 and 2, and The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.
00:07:52
Speaker
Yeah. I think he's done like a, they've done like a lot of stuff too. Like, I believe they did I Am Legend. Yeah, I think this is his eighth film that's based on a book.
00:08:04
Speaker
Mm-hmm. Yeah, so I, my personal opinion, this movie, because I was honestly thinking that while while reading this, and you know, Crystal, you've said this several times about Stephen King's books, is he writes really good movies.
00:08:22
Speaker
And as I'm reading it, I'm thinking, In my opinion, this isn't, like you said guys said, it's like very slow. it is very character driven.
00:08:33
Speaker
But I can see like that this is kind of boring and can be built boring. Not a lot going on here. But I can see where this is could be very good for the eyes to see.
00:08:48
Speaker
that's He really does write such descriptive visuals that yeah it's... it's easy to visualize a lot of his stories. And so that's why I think they really do lend themselves to screen so well.
Content Warnings and Themes
00:09:06
Speaker
Stephen King has this way of writing that transports the reader into that place. And although I'm sure a lot of us see something slightly different for the most part,
00:09:20
Speaker
We all see very similar type things, you know, with changes maybe to color palettes or whatever. But we it's it's so well done that we can kind of all agree about what it is or what it might look like.
00:09:35
Speaker
And so when we do see it on screen, none of us questions it. None of us says, oh, that's not that's not right or it shouldn't have been like that. like It feels right every time.
00:09:46
Speaker
it it really blows me away. Yeah. Yeah. Definitely. And this is one of four Stephen King stories that was adapted into movies for 2025. So obviously we had The Monkey, The Life of Chuck, and then we've got The Running Man, which is another title under King's pen name.
00:10:08
Speaker
That one comes out, I think, in November. Yeah. Yeah. He also currently has the Institute that is coming out. It's like a TV show, I believe. Yes. And the the new Carrie adaptation, isn't that coming soon too?
00:10:23
Speaker
I think that's 2026, possibly. yeah He's just got a lot going on. yeah Well, there's also the Cujo remake too. Yeah. yeah And you know what I think is really cool is that something I saw in a lot of interviews is that due to his experience with previous adaptations, he had full control over this casting.
00:10:44
Speaker
Complete control. Where there wasn't a cast member that did not get his okay in this movie, which I think is really interesting.
00:11:00
Speaker
It is. Not a lot of authors get that. hu like He is fully involved in this, which I think is awesome. Absolutely.
00:11:11
Speaker
Well, are we ready to get into spoilers or was there anything else we wanted to discuss? Let's get into the spoilers. Let's do it. All right. Now that we've shared our ratings and our first impressions of the long walk, it is time to dig deeper But before we do that, this is your final back out date to really talk about the story and compare it to the movie.
00:11:36
Speaker
So we're going to get into spoiler territory. And if you haven't read or watched it, consider this your warning.
Book vs. Film Adaptation
00:11:42
Speaker
We'll also cover some content and trigger warnings before we jump in. The Long Walk is a dark, intense story that deals heavily with themes of death, violence, and physical suffering.
00:11:54
Speaker
It also touches on suicide, psychological trauma, and exploitation of young people. If these topics are upsetting to you, please take care of yourself while listening.
00:12:04
Speaker
Skip ahead, step away, or come back another time if you need to because your well-being comes first. But with this one, I am going to do it a little differently. I'm not going to break the two down scene by scene because there's just a lot of walking and a lot of dying. walking. Mm-hmm.
00:12:25
Speaker
So we're going to discuss the differences between the book and the movie, what stood out, what we liked, what we didn't like, obviously. And we're going to go into some behind the scenes stuff too.
00:12:37
Speaker
So in the book, there are 100 walkers and in the movie, There are only 50. So there's one per state. is out yeah because i I thought it was one per state when I watched, but I've only seen it the one time. And i I was in the movie theater, so I didn't get to like pause and take notes like I normally would. And there's no closed captions. There's no closed captions. can't hear them.
00:13:01
Speaker
So I was very, i i remembered that it was 50, but I couldn't remember if it was one per state. like Like the world's worst Miss USA pageant.
00:13:13
Speaker
And then instead of districts, it's states. so Yeah. Also something interesting. I can't remember in the book, but I believe the age requirement is different as well.
00:13:26
Speaker
I think that in the movie, they kind of make it seem like it's 18 and over. I don't think that was the case in the book. I definitely don't remember it being mentioned.
00:13:38
Speaker
Okay. I think I'm pretty sure that it was an age below 18. Like they could be younger than 18 in the book. I think in the book, they were like no longer eligible after 18.
00:13:53
Speaker
Okay. Almost like a Hunger Games situation when you hit 18- you are you no longer qualify yeah yeah that's what i was thinking that's what i was thought as well so i think that was interesting i hate to keep comparing it to the hunger games but because there's a lot of similarities not just in you know because their inspiration was the same and so there are a lot of similarities and you know i'm not gonna in any way whatsoever imply that the hunger games ripped off of the long walk they're very different stories but they do have a lot of similarities yeah yes something really really love about this the book and the movie is that we are immediately diving in like there is no backstory we don't even know a time period
00:14:46
Speaker
We don't even know why we are in this dystopian like setting or anything like that. We don't even know what like we kind of can make assumptions based on the things that we're seeing around us.
00:15:02
Speaker
But we don't even know any type of time period. And we're just immediately like this is what's happening. This is kind of like the rules.
00:15:13
Speaker
And the walk is like starting now. And I love that. I went into this super blind. And so I knew that it was a like, but they have the force to walk. And I knew that it was more of like a lottery situation to get in. But that's really all I knew.
00:15:34
Speaker
i had no idea that this is... walking the whole time that there it wasn't like, oh, we're going to walk for eight hours or 12 hours and then everybody rests for two hours or we take breaks for everybody. Like I had no idea.
00:15:48
Speaker
And so in my head, I'm like, oh, they must be getting close to nighttime. They'll probably camp, you know, and that never happened. And they kept talking about getting their ticket. Yeah. hu And I didn't know what that meant.
00:16:01
Speaker
And so it was a like shock to me. you know And i was I guess I wasn't like super surprised. This is a Stephen King book and it is compared to The Hunger Games a lot.
00:16:14
Speaker
So I knew that people were going to have to die. i guess I just didn't picture that. And so it really was...
00:16:25
Speaker
jarring you know what i mean like that that shock of realizing holy holy shit what just happened yeah like this is what a ticket means a ticket means you're dying and they call it buying out too like there were there were some terms in there that king just kind of threw out expecting you to know what it meant right i love that that's my favorite yeah type of thing in a book it's like you either get on the train and you need to understand what's going on or get off of it like you just need to go with the flow Right.
00:16:56
Speaker
And I really, i think that that as a literary device works really well because that first ticket was so much more upsetting when you didn't realize what was about to happen. When you didn't realize what that meant.
00:17:12
Speaker
Who's delivering the ticket. Yeah. yeah yeah And honestly, and you, and you immediately know that there's like a bad guy, like yeah evil bad guy.
00:17:22
Speaker
Which is the major. And they, in the movie, I think that they do this so well. Because before, we don't even get the title card until a decent amount into the movie. And this is so freaking good.
00:17:39
Speaker
This is so good. Like, honestly, I got chills during movie. I've got chills now. Yeah, just thinking about it. Because we're, like, so, like, I can't even tell. like but like, 10 minutes, 15 minutes into the movie? Yeah. And honestly, I feel like it was longer, to be honest. And we're just like...
00:17:56
Speaker
We're starting the walk and this is the, we're all getting our numbers and and you know, we all signed up. Yeah. And Gary's saying goodbye to mom. yeah And it's, it's emotional. It's intense. But like, what does this mean? We all got our numbers. Okay. Everyone start the walk and we all have to keep this pace. We have this stuff.
00:18:13
Speaker
And then somebody lags behind due to something and we get the most brutal shot Mm-hmm. In that moment. And then title card.
00:18:27
Speaker
And realizing, like, we're not messing around. and But it i it was in the book, I'm pretty sure, where they said, like, they say the walk doesn't really start until after the first ticket. Mm-hmm. And That's exactly what happened the movie. That's exactly what happened.
Character Portrayals and Changes
00:18:42
Speaker
It was so perfect. And here here I was in the theater by myself and... I'm trying not to boo who loudly, you know, so I'm just trying to like, cause I don't want the people around me to know I'm crying. know and so I'm just like and my popcorn, just trying really hard not to, and I must've looked like I was laughing, which is even worse.
00:19:06
Speaker
should just cry. Yeah. and like And the acting is top tier because immediately, even when they first... I forget his name, Garrity.
00:19:18
Speaker
When he first gets there with his mom... Immediately crying because they, you know, he's about to leave um to go on this walk. That immediately made me emotional.
00:19:31
Speaker
Judy Greer Garrity's mom huh was like, she's only in the movie for make like a total of six minutes or something. it's It's a really small amount of time.
00:19:43
Speaker
But that six minutes gutted me gutted me i i cried but the beginning scene and at the end like i lost it there in theater like the last time she was on screen i lost it in the theater i didn't care who was around me i was boohooing that's just all there is to it and i dare anyone else to not in that moment any other mother to not cry at that moment Did you guys see that that during the, not opening night, but before they had treadmills during the viewings where you had to walk the three miles an hour while you were viewing it?
00:20:26
Speaker
And if you stopped, they kicked you out. Yeah. That's crazy. Could you do that? could you guys do that? Yeah. I mean, I could three miles an hour is a standard treadmill walk for me. But like if they put that shit on incline, probably not. No. yeah What about you, Lindsay?
00:20:41
Speaker
I'd like to say I could, but I'm I'm totally sure I'd get so encaptured in this movie that I'd just stop moving and I'd just stare at the screen. There's Yeah. yeah I'd get distracted. There's no way.
00:20:56
Speaker
I'm thinking about looking at a big, like a huge screen and walking on a treadmill at the same time. Actually, kind of like I feel like I'd get dizzy. I'd probably fall. Yeah. That's why I'd be holding on. I'm not going lie. I'd be holding on the little handles.
00:21:10
Speaker
Yeah. But that's the big difference a big difference between the book and the movie is in the book, it's four miles per hour. Right? Which is crazy. it so and That's ah that's ah that's a That's a very brisk pace of a walk. that right That's a slow run.
00:21:29
Speaker
Yeah. that's a That's a slow jog, but that's a very fast-paced walk to maintain. Three miles an hour is a reasonable, like... you know your heart rate's getting up there but you're not necessarily breaking a sweat until it gets hot or you're going uphill you know i did see that was a correction that king was glad he got to make between the book and the movie yeah because like i was when i saw four miles per hour i was like these kids ain't gonna last more than 24 hours we're gonna have like the walks over after 12 hours at four miles per hour especially when they hit hit that steep incline like they'll be dropping like flies
00:22:05
Speaker
And these actors actually were walking like total once they had finished filming was like 200 to 300 miles. Yeah. Yeah. And they've they filmed continuously. Yeah. So like in in order um so that you can see from the beginning as they get more and more worn out and they're like they're physically different from the start to the finish.
00:22:29
Speaker
And it's not just because of makeup. or or, you know, costumes, it's like legitimately they've been walking. It was pretty amazing. This movie is so well done.
00:22:41
Speaker
Yeah. Something I will say that I didn't love a lot about the movie that I missed from the book is in the book, it's much more of a spectacle.
00:22:54
Speaker
Yes. yeah And I feel like that's not represented in the movie at all. and um You know, they do come across brand random people that are sitting and watching because, you know, this whole entire thing is being filmed kind of low key. Like, I mean, I would keep saying the Hunger Games, but it's it's not as dramatic as the Hunger Games. But there is one camera on them as they're walking that everyone is watching in.
00:23:23
Speaker
But I feel like you assume in this world. I feel like this is a difference in times too, because when this was originally written, I don't know that Stephen King could have imagined a time where we had live streams all over the place. You know what i mean? That people, you know, when this was originally written, you would have to go see the live show. You know what i mean? So people would come out to the roadside. People would gather in cities to see you know, when the walk was going past and,
00:23:54
Speaker
And so I feel like that would have made more sense even when he was writing it. But I think the change was about right.
00:24:07
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. I can see that because honestly, that also kind of like puts an idea in your head, maybe of like a timeline possibly of when more like being closer to possibly the technology of now,
00:24:23
Speaker
Right. I also think if you notice that like they mentioned that the major doesn't want this to be a spectacle where people show up.
00:24:34
Speaker
Unless they already live in that town. And you notice that people don't really come out even if it's a town or it's a city. You see a couple here and there. were very deserted. Like a lot of the places were run down, deserted places.
00:24:48
Speaker
Right. And I think part of that is run down, deserted. We were supposed to see this like dystopian, you know, post disaster era United States, but also...
Themes of Control and Spectatorship
00:25:00
Speaker
I think it went to show that people didn't want to to watch this. People didn't want to see this. This was not the spectacle, the major thought it was. It was more of a control device than anything.
00:25:15
Speaker
Which was honestly, in my opinion, an opposite feeling of the book. In the book, it felt very much like everybody really wanted to see this. Yes. and everyone loved it and enjoyed it Yes.
00:25:29
Speaker
um In several different ways. Yeah, they were, the spectators were literally cheering on the sidelines in the book. And then in the movie, they're not waving. They're not enthusiastic.
00:25:42
Speaker
They're literally just watching them walk. Yep. Yeah. It's a huge difference. In the book, you know, they'd have like a whole group out there with signs and, you know, screaming and like running into the road to interrupt.
00:25:55
Speaker
Yeah. Like the different, you know, walkers or whatever. And at one point, even Garrity in the book, like goes and runs up to one of the spectators and kisses her. You know what I mean? So like, that was like, it was like the celebratory thing. And it is clearly not celebrated in the movie until the very end.
00:26:20
Speaker
And that's a whole different story. You also kill a dog in the book, which... Huge bummer. Yeah. They also killed 99 young men. but so With that one dog. With that one dog. But that one dog really, really bothered me. That dog didn't sign up for that.
00:26:40
Speaker
No. Can I talk about one of my favorite parts in the movie? Yeah. I've been so excited to talk about this part. This part has literally stuck with me so much in the movie because And it's so messed up. It's just, I think it was just done so well where it felt like i was about to have a heart attack in the movie theater.
00:27:06
Speaker
The part where, you know, i believe it's the first night, like the first time they're walking all the way till nighttime. And I believe Gary, he's gotten three warnings.
00:27:20
Speaker
Just he's, he's, his mental is he's going a little crazy at the moment. And just going through all the emotions. And I'm forgetting the other guy's name.
00:27:34
Speaker
Pete McFreeze. Yes. McFreeze kind of trying to talk him through it. And, you know, he's just taking it out on McFreeze at the moment. He just got three warnings. If you get one more warning, you're done.
00:27:47
Speaker
and you get your ticket. And then they see a sign for the incline. This part, I have chills right now just thinking about it. The way that this was filmed, it was like, so as they're walking, they have the vehicles around them with the people walking.
00:28:07
Speaker
with their, you know, weapons ready to take out these guys if they get past their warnings, you know, get below their speed that they're supposed to go. And the second they hit that hill, they all jump off their vehicles because they know they're about to take a lot of people out because they're not going to be able to make it up this hill. And they're all standing and all next to them with the weapons up to them.
00:28:34
Speaker
Ready to take them out. And he, our main guy, Garrity, is starting to march up this hill. And the person is just standing there with the weapon up to him, following up the hill. Right up to his head. He doesn't have any warnings left.
00:28:48
Speaker
That part and really freaking got me. and And literally... Tons of these boys are are getting shot, are getting killed. And he's having to like step over bodies and going, you're hearing the shots go.
00:29:02
Speaker
And again, back to Hunger Games, the sounds of the gun, like the sounds of the cannon, you know, you just lost another one. You know, here's another one down. They're right there. Because they're building community a little bit during this thing, even though they know all there's only one that can survive this.
00:29:18
Speaker
They're kind of building a community a little bit and a friendship. hmm. And he, all of a sudden, he's like trying to make it. He doesn't think he's going to make it. And McReeze comes up and grabs him.
00:29:31
Speaker
And that just like, it helps him push him through. And that really got me. That was good. That was really good. That was like cinematic. That was just incredible.
00:29:41
Speaker
i again, crying. Yeah. In the theater. cry Yep. So clearly since there's- half of the walkers they've had to cut some of the characters from the movie so some of the main characters that are both in the book in the movie are garrity mcbreeze stebbins baker barkovich olsen parker and of course the major who's played by mark hamill who has now made his second appearance on our podcast in the same month right welcome back mark hamill
00:30:16
Speaker
But in the movie, because there are less walkers, they had to combine some of these characters. Yeah. So there's a character named Scram in the book who is combined with Stebbins and Olsen.
00:30:31
Speaker
And they- Their storylines definitely got muddled from in the book. And some characters were split and some were combined and some were split and combined.
Mark Hamill's Role as the Major
00:30:44
Speaker
It's odd. Even like, I can't remember who in the book was married, but it's Olsen in the movie. Scram. yeah okay it so and i was like because at first i was like wait are they they're different and again this is normally when i would pause it and start taking notes but what do you do and so i was like i hope lizzie's getting a lot of it it was hard to keep track for sure it's our first theater release so and then this is mark hamill's third time in a stephen king film
00:31:15
Speaker
After Sleepwalkers in 1992. And then of course Life of Chuck. He didn't even remember that he was in Sleepwalkers. he's I think he's uncredited. i don't think he even has a credit in that movie.
00:31:26
Speaker
Which is funny. I've heard. Because i you know i I really wasn't sure how I felt about this movie. It left me with a lot of really big feelings. I'm still kind of processing all that. But I listen to a lot of other podcasts.
00:31:39
Speaker
and and read a lot of articles and and watched a lot of interviews on YouTube and stuff to try and like see what what is everybody else saying? Do I feel that way? How do I feel? And a couple of people said that like they weren't thrilled by Mark Hamill's role as the major, that they didn't they didn't feel as connected to the major And that they thought that Mark Hamill could have done a better job, I guess, humanizing the major.
00:32:07
Speaker
And I really feel like that is the opposite of what I wanted out of the major at all. Like, don't get me wrong. It's weird to see Luke Skywalker as the villain.
00:32:19
Speaker
You know, that's that's just all how that is. But... I didn't need to know his backstory. I didn't. He's the bad guy. That's it. It's a dystopia. that That's all there is to it. And I think him not being present as much as he was adds to that that, I don't know, that fear factor, right? Like, we don't know this guy. We're just supposed to look up to him.
00:32:50
Speaker
Yeah. You know, we don't, we have no idea what he's actually doing or what he's actually up to, but he is the boss, you know? And yeah I loved seeing how the boys started connecting that as they're walking they're like wait a minute who even is this guy you know screw that guy and and they start really figuring it out like which is something that takes a lot of people years and years to figure out who the real bad guys are in in the world spoiler alert it's the billionaires
00:33:26
Speaker
But they, you know, these kids figure it out while they're walking, you know, before they even turn 20, they figured out who the bad guy is. And it's the guy trying to tell him he's the good guy. Just saying.
00:33:38
Speaker
Like you also kind of see that in the book where Garrity even like says that there's one point where he's, you know, the major he'll come by and like check on them and then like leave.
00:33:51
Speaker
And like one time in the beginning, he's like screaming. He's like so excited and like waving at him practically. And then that like attitude changes.
00:34:03
Speaker
Throughout the story. And I think that we don't really see that so much in the movie because he kind of already has a motive going into it. But ah you kind of see, like you said, that that attitude changes throughout the movie amongst all of them.
00:34:18
Speaker
But I don't think we need a backstory for the major because this is not his story. his right It's the story of the walkers. We don't need a a backstory of anything outside of these people walking on this road.
00:34:35
Speaker
That's the only story that matters. Yep. And Mark Hamill said that when the director, Francis Lawrence, approached him about playing the part of the major, he said he already knew the character. He knew who this person was going to be because he spent his teenage years in Japan where he went to school next to a U.S. military base.
00:34:57
Speaker
So he saw these majors and was like, oh, I know exactly who to base this character on. Um, He also said that he feels that this character is easily his worst character of all time.
00:35:11
Speaker
And even compared him to the Joker from Batman. Wow. So. Interesting.
00:35:20
Speaker
But in 2019, Hamill actually said that he was going to step away from acting. And he wasn't going to be on camera anymore. He was just going to do voiceover work. Mike Flanagan casted him in his Netflix series, The Fall of the House house of Usher.
00:35:37
Speaker
And then he got cast again in Life of Chuck. So now we've got more Mark Hamill. this means Oh, darn. Yep. But all of the boys actually treated Mark Hamill as the major while they filming.
00:35:54
Speaker
And they stayed away from him. They didn't really interact with him to kind of build up this... this villain that's so cool that's so interesting because honestly in their interviews it's so funny because now they're so they have they seem to have a different relationship with them when they just like being around him oh yeah that's what it appears to be in it he said he said as soon as filming ended or someone was done filming they would come up to him and they'd have conversations and they get and uh the other actors actually said that mark hamble was really nice so okay that's good
00:36:27
Speaker
that's what That's what I want to hear. That would be disappointing if it wasn't. I like more Camel. A character that they changed a lot that it was in your face more was McFreeze, in my opinion.
00:36:43
Speaker
Because, I mean, his backstory obviously extremely different and extremely in the book versus the movie. who But also he's kind of like...
00:36:55
Speaker
This character in the movie that's kind of like pushing everyone through this. Pushing everyone to that's helping them get through every step of this journey.
00:37:09
Speaker
And kind of keeping the peace almost. And like almost being like comedic relief sometimes. I see very much McReeze as like the hope. He is the hope.
00:37:20
Speaker
He is... he It's almost like he is walking in hope yeah That's it. And I see, you know, Garrity as more the cynic, right? He's cynical. he's He's jaded. he And and he that's his purpose. He is walking in this cynicism, in this, you know, screw the man mentality. Life is awful. This world is awful. Whereas McFreeze the exact opposite. This this world is beautiful. Yeah.
00:37:54
Speaker
And like watching them walk in those two different ways, but still end up like the, the best friends, basically, you know, the brothers is really just such great storytelling.
00:38:08
Speaker
Yeah. The movie definitely portrays more of a solidified alliance and the kindness and the friendship and they're really walking together in the movie.
00:38:23
Speaker
But, in the book, it doesn't really develop like that. They don't really have time to get to know each other, you know? hu Yeah. You, it's like they discuss some of their backstories a little bit, but they don't develop like a brother like friendship.
00:38:40
Speaker
Another character I really liked in the movie was Baker as well. I really loved him a lot. His, his end really got me. i I cried so much.
00:38:52
Speaker
At that part. Like I was like. i was like sobbing. Into my popcorn. At the movie theater. And I was trying to be silent about it. Because that one actually got me really bad. That one was really sad. That one was sad.
00:39:07
Speaker
Olsen's the one that really messed me up. Yeah. Olsen was. They were all really sad. were all sad. Honestly. They really were. And let's just talk about how. book. Yeah.
00:39:18
Speaker
but you know Stephen King just doesn't shy away from misogyny, racism, violence, you know just disgusting, grotesque, horrific scenes.
00:39:30
Speaker
And neither does this film. This film did not shy away from the just absolute appalling...
00:39:43
Speaker
kills their murders you know we see the you know like these boys that have to go to the bathroom and they have to keep walking we see these boys literally like walking on broken ankles and we it it's the the camera doesn't shy away the film doesn't shy away we see it all and somehow in under two hours You become so attached to every one of these characters that every single kill is devastating.
00:40:20
Speaker
Every single one. i can't... Any character that had a name, i i teared up. or Or there's a couple I had to look away. I had to look away.
00:40:32
Speaker
And that to me was just like that... Is why I think I'm struggling so much with this movie. Because in reality. This is something that I will never. Would have never sought out to watch. Ever.
00:40:44
Speaker
Knowing how horrific it was going to be. i would have never watched this.
00:40:51
Speaker
But I'm glad that I did. And it definitely left me. i i i still feel so much about this movie. And even though this is not my genre. And this is not something that I would typically watch.
00:41:06
Speaker
It has made me really consider. the types of things that cause me to feel. And why do I shy away from those? you know why Why do I keep avoiding those big feelings? Yeah.
00:41:19
Speaker
Because, damn, you know this this movie hit hard. Yeah. It definitely hits in the feels. Real-sies.
00:41:32
Speaker
I do think that the movie does a better job at explaining why they're doing the long walk and what the prize is for winning. no But I think the book does a better job of explaining like the rules of the long walk and and what's permitted and what's not.
00:41:51
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah, they the prize and everything is just so vague. Like, it's just like you get whatever you want, a wish, and money, lots of money.
00:42:02
Speaker
like it's kind of like, just like, whatever. i think it was interesting in the book how, kind of, i don't know, about a third of the way through, they start talking about, well, does anybody even know what happens to the winners?
00:42:14
Speaker
Like, has anybody ever seen what happens to the winners? Kind of implying that, like, They get taken out back behind the nearest shed and and killed too. Like there really are no winners. Yeah. And we don't really know.
00:42:29
Speaker
You know what i mean We're never given this guarantee that there is a winner. And I thought that that was really interesting. Mm-hmm. But in the movie, Garrity says that the reason he's doing the long walk is to keep his father's memory alive, which felt really reminiscent of my Oxford year.
00:42:51
Speaker
ah Right?
00:42:54
Speaker
Jesus. I did not see that coming. I did not see that comparison. Okay. And Garrity's father was confronted by the major for illegal teachings of the old ways.
00:43:09
Speaker
And he's given the choice of pledging his allegiance or death. And he chooses death. So Garrity wants vengeance against the Major, and his one wish is to take out the Major.
00:43:27
Speaker
yeah Which not something that's really in the book. No, not not at all. No, so it I don't know if this gives us purpose in the story,
00:43:40
Speaker
Because the whole point throughout the story is what why are you here? What are you doing this for? And no one really knows that everyone's like, oh, I don't know why I'm here. i don't know what I'm doing.
Film's Ending and Viewer Impact
00:43:48
Speaker
Well, everybody volunteers.
00:43:50
Speaker
It's a volunteer thing. And they have the opportunity to back out if their name gets drawn. But clearly anybody who gets drawn doesn't really back out.
00:44:00
Speaker
They go. You know? And so it. I don't know. Like, for me, i walk because I was told I was supposed to walk. You know?
00:44:12
Speaker
But you... And I'm sure there's some of these kids are like, I don't know. Glory. You know? Whatever. But, you know, in a lot of these dystopian type things, it's always children. It's always young kids.
00:44:27
Speaker
And, you know, I don't know if that's a... Because it's a better entertainment value or whatever. But... I think it really is, you know, a, ah you know, an evil regime preying upon the you're easiest prey. These are impressionable young kids who we can convince to smile while marching down the road before they get shot, you know, and that's, it's really terrifying when you think of it that way. Yeah, for sure.
00:45:02
Speaker
And obviously, The biggest difference between the book and the movie is the ending. the So in the book, Garrity is the ultimate winner.
00:45:15
Speaker
And in the ending of the movie, he is not. No, he is not. Which was a complete surprise. I had no idea they going to change it that much.
00:45:28
Speaker
ah But in the book, Garrity continues to walk after he's already won and he's walking seemingly towards death. He sees a dark figure. he continues to walk toward the dark figure. I have a theory that this dark figure is something that comes across in a lot of Stephen King's novels.
00:45:50
Speaker
There's like something about this dark figure thing. haven't read i haven't read I think I just actually calculated. think I've read 12 of Stephen King's stories, which is honestly not that much compared to all the stuff that he has.
00:46:05
Speaker
But this i have the theory that probably the Stark figure is probably something that crosses over between like where the like the stand and all that stuff. So I am curious about that.
00:46:17
Speaker
I like to think that' that's truth. The King multiverse. Yeah. But in the movie... Garrity chooses to bow out, leaving McFreeze to win. This whole end scene.
00:46:32
Speaker
we loved it. I loved it. McFreeze stops and starts getting warnings, and Garrity goes back and says, no, brother, just a little bit longer. Just a little bit longer. We have to stay together. And while he's convincing McFreeze to get up and get moving, he's getting warnings too.
00:46:47
Speaker
And so they they walk along together, and McFreeze... like or Garrity starts to fall behind again and before McVries can realize it. I audibly gasped in the theater.
00:46:58
Speaker
I mean, I could see coming. i could I could see it coming. I was like, oh no, oh no, oh no. And it, it yeah. That, damn.
00:47:10
Speaker
like I wish you could get a reaction video of me because it was I probably looked like a cartoon. like I was like... I couldn't believe it it. was so... I thought this ending was way better. Like, what do you guys think? Oh, I loved this ending.
00:47:24
Speaker
I loved this ending. This ending was incredible. To me, it very much was like these, they became brothers and they changed this walk, changed them, but they changed each other.
00:47:43
Speaker
Right. And McVries gave Garrity this hope for something better. But this walk changed McVries and he became the cynic.
00:47:55
Speaker
He became jaded. And did what Gary wanted to do. It shook me. Shook me. There's a lot of different interpretations of how this ends, too.
00:48:11
Speaker
Because, you know, they're walking, they're the last two and they get into the city, and we hear the crowd, and we're starting to see people on the side of the road. But you don't see their faces. Which is so weird.
00:48:24
Speaker
I'm like, why don't we see their faces? They're all faceless. it It makes me wonder, were they even there? Or was there just enough noise to simulate a crowd?
00:48:38
Speaker
that his boys were hallucinating because they've been walking for days and days and days. They've been awake for days and days and days. Also, then, like, so McVries gets the combine gun from the soldier. That was his wish.
00:48:56
Speaker
And the minute he turns it, all crowd is gone. I think he got killed in that moment. um Personally, I think he got killed in that moment. And we're having this, like,
00:49:09
Speaker
death hallucination of some kind which is an awful thing but i but you see like the crowd starts to disappear the fireworks go away and then he just kind of he shoots the major nothing happens nobody comes rushing to him there's no there's literally no one else it's just the two of them and he turns and he walks away it's just
00:49:34
Speaker
Sobbing. hu Yeah. Sobbing in the theater. So interesting. i like this change a lot. like it. i but So, like, credits start to roll. I get up, I go out to the lobby, I sit down on a bench, and I message Lindsay.
00:49:48
Speaker
I said, what the hell? What the hell? I couldn't even make it to my car. i was just like, nope, gotta talk about this right now. And this is why i hated, a that we all watch this from different places. Like, we usually do, but, like...
00:50:07
Speaker
i could pauses it I couldn't it. I couldn't wait. i wasn't at home. I had to get home
Reflections on Adaptations Over Time
00:50:12
Speaker
before. now And then my mom was like, because she was watching my kid, what did you think of the movie? was like, I don't know. I can't talk about it right now.
00:50:21
Speaker
i need my friends to talk about it Is this scarier than King's supernatural works? what what What are we thinking on that?
00:50:34
Speaker
i did i was seeing somebody asking if this is identified as like horror and i was like i mean it's definitely got the gore and everything but i feel like this is like dystopian thriller yeah possibly with this gore in it the psychological yeah like that's kind of what i'm getting what do you think lindsey Yeah, and this goes back to our episode on The Mist where it's like, you know, real people real people are always scarier than the monsters and yes and the ghosts and stuff. So yeah, this is a... This feels scarier. Yeah, it's more intense, definitely.
00:51:15
Speaker
Yeah. What did you guys think of Stebbins, though? That was like a big character that I thought was kind of interesting. Stebbins in the movie was completely different than Stebbins in the book. Yeah, yeah.
00:51:29
Speaker
I agree. i think I like the idea of him, though. Like, I like that this was like put into the story where he was basically trained to push them in in the book. more It was more discussed in the book.
00:51:46
Speaker
Basically trained to be pushing them to... Last longer almost. And it worked. Yeah. It was Barkovich. That really got me. Because here he is This like absolute jerk.
00:52:02
Speaker
Like the character that everyone is supposed to hate. And he was really hateable. it but somehow still I felt something for him as we start to see him break you know i just these characters are just so well done and honestly I think this movie is really well done yeah totally I think I can guess but um what's our final verdict then movie oh movie totally movie
00:52:36
Speaker
And I wonder, because Stephen King has so much control over his adaptation or the adaptations from his works. the The changes that were made, i wonder if he would have written this story differently now than he did then.
00:52:51
Speaker
You know what mean? Oh, I'm There's a lot of changes from his earlier works to their adaptations. And it makes me wonder, like, as he's grown older and as the world has changed, how much of his works then would be changed now. be Legitimately, I just love the movie, the story of the movie so much better than the book.
00:53:10
Speaker
Oh, yeah. And I think that's probably partially a product of the time and a product of his age. Yeah, definitely. Well, now we're going to get into our question of the episode.
00:53:24
Speaker
So in our first episode of Stephen King Month, we discussed our favorite King adaptations, and you both said that you hadn't seen many. So now that we have explored more of King's works and adaptations, have your opinions changed on what your favorite adaptation is?
00:53:45
Speaker
I mean, mine is now the life of Chuck, by still Shawshank right up there. right a very, very close second. What about you, Carrie?
00:53:57
Speaker
ah Shawshank is probably still my favorite, but the long walk, honestly, like is very close second because this one, it just really got me. It was so good to me.
00:54:12
Speaker
I really enjoyed it I've reflected a lot since that episode. So I'd have to say my favorite is Life of Chuck and then Shawshank and then Long Walk.
00:54:24
Speaker
Wow. Wow. Yeah. I grew up a little. Yeah. oh but that is going to be a wrap on the long walk.
00:54:35
Speaker
And with it, our end to Stephen King month here on based on a book. We've taken quite the journey through King's worlds this September, but don't worry. We're not stopping here.
00:54:46
Speaker
October is officially spooky month. And you know, we've got some titles lined up to keep the scares coming. In the meantime, make sure you're following us on social media so you don't miss a single update, clip, or behind-the-scenes moment.
00:55:00
Speaker
You can find all of our links, episodes, and more in one place on our Beacons page. That's also where you can send your book-to-screen recommendations.
00:55:11
Speaker
And if you want to join us in reading along, check out our Libro FM through our affiliate link. It's our favorite way to listen to audiobooks while supporting local bookstores at the same time.
00:55:23
Speaker
So thanks for walking with us through Stephen King Month. And remember, just keep picking them up and putting them down. And we'll see you in the next chapter of Based on Book.