‘The โฃLong Walk‘ Film Delivers Shocking Ending, Subvertingโฃ Source Material and Sparking Debate
Los Angeles, CA – โคThe film โadaptation of Stephen โKing’s The Long Walk โ has concluded with a dramatically altered โending โคthat โdeparts substantially from โthe novel, leaving audiences stunned and prompting discussion about its thematic implications. While the โฃbook sees Ray Garratyโ emerge as the sole survivor, haunted and endlessly walking, the film presentsโ a farโฃ more vengeful conclusion,โ challenging conventional notions of hope and โคforgiveness in the face of systemic cruelty.
The film diverges โฃmost sharply in the final momentsโข of โฃtheโ Walk. In โฃthe source material, Pete McCormick choosesโ to โฃstop, sacrificing himself to allow โRay to continue. โคThe โคfilmโค reverses thisโฃ dynamic: Ray stops, professing his love for โฃPete before being executed. However, the true shock comes with Pete’s subsequent wish fulfillment. Instead ofโ requesting a life of peace, as planned, Pete demands a carbine, instantly using it to kill the Major – the architect ofโ theโ Long โWalk โค-โ and โคthen disappearingโ intoโ theโค night. This reversal positionsโ Pete as an agent โคof retribution, โฃwhile ray ultimately chooses self-sacrifice to perhaps save his friend.
This bold shiftโ initially โขappears to contradict the novel’sโ core theme of maintaining humanity in โคextreme circumstances.Though, according to a recent analysis by Vulture,โ theโ film ultimately arrives at a more complex message. The strong emotional bond between Ray and Pete is central to their survival, but โthe โฃfilm argues โthat โขa purely hopeful โขor forgiving ending woudl feel disingenuous, โขparticularly given the โฃcurrent socio-political climate.
The timingโ of the film’s release, coinciding with heightened debate surrounding political โviolence, is noteworthy, though the filmmakers have indicated they did not intend to directlyโ engage โwith these conversations. Nevertheless, the ending reflects a “bleak yet honest” โฃassessment โof โa world whereโฃ systemic oppression can create monsters, and love alone โis insufficient to overcome it.
As theโค film portrays, “There is โคa point at whichโฆit is no longerโ possibleโฃ to face โsuffering and oppressionโ withโ dignity.” The ending is presented not as a โขvalidation โof Pete’s earlier ideals of โคcamaraderie, but asโข an acknowledgement of the limitations of simply “choosing love.” The film echoes a sentiment from theโ novel – “Everyone loses” theโข Long Walk – extending that โloss to include โthose in power. Pete’s finalโ act, while a betrayal of his initial principles, is framed as a necessary act of defiance,โ ensuring that if noโ one โฃcan truly win, the Major will not either.