With the long-awaited film adaptation of The Long Walk finally arriving in theaters after decades of development, it feels like the perfect moment to revisit Stephen King’s haunting novel. First published in 1979 under his Richard Bachman pseudonym, the book has lingered in the imaginations of readers and filmmakers alike, earning a reputation as one of King’s most psychologically relentless works. The story’s bleak simplicity and unflinching look at human endurance have long made it a daunting challenge to bring to the screen, which is why the release of the movie marks both a milestone for King adaptations and an opportunity to re-examine the brutal brilliance of the original text. At first glance, the premise appears straightforward: one hundred teenage boys begin a government-sponsored walking contest. The rules are simple—each participant must maintain a pace of at least four miles per hour. If a boy slows down too often or tries to stop, soldiers monitoring the event execute him ...