Film Review : The Long Walk (2025)

The Long Walk might go down as a film in 2025 not enough people see. A simple story that makes you think and will actually shock you in moments.

The premise here is pretty simple. In a post war US that is decades into a seemingly severe depression there is a contest held by a military figure named ‘The General’ which sees a lottery happen. One boy from every state is chosen and tasked with the simple task of walking, without a break and maintaining a 3 mile per hour strode, until there is only one left. The winner will then get one wish of theirs granted.

The walk itself is staged as a patriotic thing and a cause for everyone to come together in even if by joining you are essentially signing a death wish. If you fail to maintain your speed or anything of the sort you aren’t just pulled off and jailed, you are shot in the head, brutally, right then and there.

What we get here is a powerful showing of kids who don’t entirely want to be there but sign up for various reasons and the friendships that occur during their death walk. 400+ miles with no breaks of any sort and these boys of different backgrounds share their stories and dreams with one another showing the true good humanity in them amid such a dark and horrible situation.

The film doesn’t shy away from the sheer brutality of the walk either. We see how the army without mercy executes these kids in front of each other. You see the struggle of them walking their feet sore, getting sick, and everything in between while they all struggle to make sure they don’t see another one of their colleges killed.

For a film that really takes place almost entirely on a road too it never feels static. Its shot beautifully and in a way that it always feels different and as if we are moving forward (while we technically always are). The acting here is terrific and will pull your heart strings towards the end.

Overall The Long Walk will leave you thinking and have a long standing impression on you. Its grim, dark, bleak, but with the slightest bit of hope sprinkled in. In a year where horror has had many shining moments The Long Walk is one of them.

Score :

4 / 5