Bone Tomahawk’s Mysterious Troglodytes Are Secretly Explained By This $160 Million Fantasy Action Movie

Bone tomahawks troglodytes are simultaneously the most enigmatic and terrifying thing about the movie, but although their origins are left unexplained, another movie from 16 years before the horror west may hold the key to their backstory. Bone tomahawk is a masterful blend of genres that takes elements of traditional western stories and mixes them with something much darker. This approach is reflected in the traglodies themselves, which both represent a monstrous, supernatural presence, as well as the powerful primal instincts of humanity.

According to some interpretations, the troglodytes constitute some of Bone tomahawks more problematic elements. Their role as the “Wild others“dances around cinematic tropes that have historically been used to demonize marginalized communities, including Native Americans. But, as one 1999 action movie explained, The concept of a savage, cannibalistic tribe is not unique to S. Craig Zahler’s 2015 film. In fact, the troglodyte story has roots that stretch back into folklore – explains why Bone tomahawk resonates so deeply with modern audiences.

The 13th Warrior’s Wendol are very similar to Bone Tomahawk’s Troglodytes

The two antagonists share many characteristics

Made in 1999 and with a budget of between $100-$160 million, The 13th warrior is a fantastic historical action movie with a radically different tone of the understated and bleak Bone tomahawk. Antonio Banderas Starring Antonio Banderas as an unlikely Arab soldier among a band of marauding Vikings, the film follows a group of 13 fighters sent north to confront an ancient and mysterious evil. What they find – despite being on a completely separate continent to Bone tomahawk And living centuries earlier, holds the key to understanding the 2015 Kurt Russell movie’s formidable adversaries.

It shows that The 13th warriorThe monsters are another tribe of cannibalistic humans, known as “Wendol“. In this case, The Vendol have regressed to a primal stateDressed in animal skins and seemingly believing that they exist somewhere in the liminal space between man and bear. They idolize the so-calledMother of the Vendol“, which the warriors set out to kill, and live in an elaborate cave system – just like Bone tomahawks troglodytes. On the surface, the similarities are superficially interesting. However, closer examination reveals that the Wendalls’ backstory and literary inspiration simultaneously explain where Bone tomahawkS troglodytes come from and what they represent.

The 13th Warrior and Bone Tomahawk tell the same story

The Troglodytes and Vendol share the same inspiration

At a glance, it would be easy to conclude that Bone tomahawk Borrowed key elements from The 13th warriors history – including cannibalistic enemies. Both movies feature an unlikely band of fighters traveling together to rid a savage land of a seemingly malevolent presence, and both feature antagonists who live in an evil cave network full of unspeakable horrors and come across as more animal than human. However, although these links establish a connection between the projects, the real story is much more complicated.

In fact, both The 13th warrior And Bone tomahawk can trace their roots back to the oldest history in the English language – the epic Anglo-Saxon poem, Beowulf. In the story, a community is affected by a monstrous (yet invisible) apparition called Grendel, who eats his enemies and terrorizes the community. Grendel is not only phonetically similar to Wendol, but he exhibits many of the same behaviors. This confirms both The 13th warrior And Bone tomahawk As part of a much older literary tradition and therefore makes their villains much more than simple monsters.

Just as Grendel embodies humanity’s dark, primal origins and in some ways harkens back to a pre-civilization era, so the Vendol and Troglodytes look to explore what lurks beneath the surface of “PoliteThe fact that both films establish antagonists who initially seem monstrous before becoming surprisingly human makes them far more disturbing than if they were purely supernatural. Bone tomahawks connection to well-established literary tropes means that the troglodytes are much more complex As the mindless killers they initially appear to be.

It’s a good thing Tomahawk’s troglodytes never got a proper explanation

It only adds to their power

It might have been tempting to provide an elaborate backstory behind how the troglodytes ended up becoming brutal cannibals. however, Bone tomahawkThe story is actually much more effective because there is no explanation. Not only do they invite the audience to come to their own conclusions, so that their imaginations can fill in the historical blanks, but it also adds to their symbolic power. The allegory that the troglodies present about humanity’s potential for savagery is all the more powerful because it remains an ambiguous metaphor throughout.

The mindlessness of the violence also firmly aligns Bone tomahawk Featuring some of the most effective horror movies ever made. Films like The Texas chain saw massacre And Alien Work because the terror has no rhyme or reason – it just happens with no earthly way to stop it. Bone tomahawkThe climactic scenes in the cave are so disturbing not just because of the violence, but because they are so bland. Avoiding the temptation to tell the audience everything about the troglodytes ultimately makes them far more evil than the Vendol, who become less scary as soon as they are rationalized.