Stephen King’s work has been adapted time and time again with a lot of his more famous novels having multiple adaptations under their belt. This fall however, we’re getting two works that are lesser known King novels and they go well together. And are both Richard Bachman novels.
King published work under the name Richard Bachman as a test to see how his works would do when they didn’t have his moniker attached. The Bachman novels tend to be less outright horror novels and a bit more twisted yet grounded in reality. One of the first novels that he published with Richard Bachman as a pseudonym was The Long Walk.
The story, which takes place in a dystopian society, features 50 young men who are competing for a grand prize at the end of the “Long Walk.” The competition is aired on television and the men have to basically be the last man standing (or walking). If your ticket is punched, the Major’s men will shoot to kill you on the spot. This novel was written in 1979.
Then came one more novel, Roadwork in 1981 with the Bachman name, before the 1982 novel The Running Man. Unlike The Long Walk, The Running Man has technically had an adaptation with the 1987 film starring Arnold Schwarzenegger but that movie does not really use any of the novel in the film. Just the name Ben Richards and the general idea of the story.
The Running Man also takes place in a dystopian society where desperate individuals offer themselves up to the Network for shows designed to award the last man standing. One show that doesn’t always have a winner is The Running Man, where individuals have to outrun hunters for over a month in order to win. When you compare The Long Walk and The Running Man, they are pretty perfect companion pieces to one another.
The Long Walk is the appetizer
Not only is The Long Walk an older book than The Running Man (arguably by 3 years but still), but it is, thematically, just the tip of the iceberg of what King was attempting to do with The Running Man. So as a companion of one another, the two novels go together well. And it makes for a fascinating dive into these films for the fall.
While screenwriter JT Mollner did tell us his adaptation of The Long Walk differs from the book, its central themes still should tie in well to The Running Man‘s. But there are obvious differences between the two. Characters like Ray and Pete find friendship and bond on this journey to a better life. Ben Richards is completely isolated.
And while both novels are brutal (people die!), The Long Walk is a bit more jarring in comparison to the tone of The Running Man as a novel. So if the novels have anything to say about it, The Long Walk is going to be a nice set up for what The Running Man presents to its audience.
The Running Man amps it up to 11
If you couldn’t tell by the trailer for The Running Man, it is a bit unhinged. In the best of ways. Imagine my delight when I saw the trailer for the first time and saw Ben Richards (Glen Powell) in his underwear, flipping off the camera. I yelled how it was from the book because it is! Unlike Ray and Pete in The Long Walk, Ben’s distain towards the Network and the world at large isn’t a slow burn. He’s angry when he starts the journey, that’s why he’s thrown into “The Running Man” as a show.
So in comparing it to The Long Walk, the tones are as different as can be but with similar ideas presented in them. Both are stories about those society have left behind, individuals struggling to make ends meet. And yet within each of these stories, King found a way of making them so incredibly different. The Long Walk almost feels soft and centered in comparison to the bombastic nature of Ben Richards and his approach to the games.
Making this double-feature one of my most anticipated of the year.
(featured image: Lionsgate/Paramount Pictures)
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