FANGORIA and Lionsgate gave fans in Austin and Chicago an early look at the film.
For decades, The Long Walk has been my go-to answer for the admittedly very nerdy question “What's the best Stephen King book that hasn't been adapted?”
It wasn't for lack of trying. Some of the heaviest hitters of King's silver screen collaborators tried over the years, from George A. Romero in the late '80s to Frank Darabont a couple of decades later. Turns out the Hollywood machine only likes the idea of kids being killed in a dystopian competition if there are bows and arrows and three-fingered salutes involved.
Francis Lawrence took a look at the plot for The Long Walk, stood up with triumphant music blaring in the background, pledged himself to be the perfect person to handle such a project, and we finally got this story told on the big screen.
Was it worth the wait? Well, if the audience from Monday night's FANGORIA sneak peek screenings in Chicago and Austin are any indication, I'd say the answer is a resounding yes.
THE LONG WALK Chicago screening hosted by Chris Wylie.
As one of the founding voices behind The Kingcast, it was my honor and sacred duty to represent FANGORIA by hosting a nerdy Stephen King trivia contest before the Austin screening and then holding a post-screening discussion with the crowd afterwards.
It's pretty dangerous business to ask the dude who makes researching and discussing Stephen King his full time job to come up with some trivia questions, but I tried to structure it in such a way that I wouldn't just be staring at a bunch of blank faces.
The difficulty ranged from what I consider easy, like “What Stephen King adaptation was the biggest box office hit?” (The answer being IT: Chapter 1) to medium difficulty like “Stephen King came up with his pen name, Richard Bachman, after hearing a song from what band on the radio?” (Bachman Turner Overdrive, naturally), to red alert difficulty like “The fictional Richard Bachman had an extensive backstory created for him by King, including an equally fictional wife. What was her name?” (Claudia y Inez Bachman, which you Dark Tower fanatics should know).
Still too difficult? Maybe so. I might have seen a few cheaters consult their phones during some of the later questions, but all I know is I got to give away some Fango bandanas, issues of the magazine, and a bunch of movie tie-in copies of The Long Walk.
THE LONG WALK FANGORIA screening in Austin hosted by Eric Vespe.
The post-screening discussion really showed how invested the audience was in the movie. I didn't expect many to stick around to listen to me blabber on about the backstory to this book, but almost everybody stayed. It's also possible they were too embarrassed to leave while still crying. This movie is rough, y'all.
But I'm happy they chose to stay and listen as I discussed some of the book's history and opened up a discussion about the movie they just watched with the crowd. Joining me at the mic was my friend and frequent FANGORIA contributor, Ryan Scott, who counts The Long Walk as one of his top King books. It is for me, too. In fact, I believe it is King's first masterpiece.
THE LONG WALK FANGORIA screening with Ryan Scott and THE KINGCAST's Eric Vespe
I guess it's not that hard to make that claim, given that King was 19 when he finished this book. A green college kid who was on the path of being a Young Republican until he hit college, grew his hair out, and started protesting the Vietnam War. This story about America's youth being fed into a stratocratic war machine is the work of an angry young man, but even with the steaming hatred for the current events of his era apparent on the page, King still can't help but focus on the compassion of the characters on this journey, specifically Ray Garraty and Peter McVries.
The Long Walk isn't a story about conniving cliques trying to screw each other over, it's about the bond of friendship that happens in extreme circumstances. In this story, it's a fictional future where the populace is entertained by watching teens get murdered during a reality show competition (long before reality TV was even a thing). But it could just as well be a Vietnam story about a platoon trying to help each other survive a particularly deadly assault.
Humanity is at the heart of King's book, and screenwriter JT Mollner (Strange Darling) smartly put that humanity front and center with his adaptation. And it worked. The Fango audience was a mixture of folks who seek out any free movie screening and more punk die-hard FANGORIA fans with horror tats and black clothes, but everybody seemed walloped by this film.
This is a ridiculously good year for Stephen King adaptations, and they run the gamut in terms of his tastes. The Monkey is a gory good time, delighting in the absurd horror of its premise much like Creepshow, and The Life of Chuck is an odd and uplifting story about the impact one person can have on the entire world without knowing it, more in the vein of a Stand By Me.
The Long Walk ends up completing that circle by taking its subject matter seriously without shying away from the gore and extreme consequences for partaking in this bloody ritual. There is no clean exit from this, and the price of caring for the characters in this story is definitely going to be paid in tears before the end.
Thanks to FANGORIA for having me out, Lionsgate for providing the film for this exclusive sneak peek, Ryan Scott for joining me in the post-screening deconstruction of the book and this new adaptation, and most importantly, thanks to everybody who came out to see the flick and join in on the conversation after.
