itās also a commentary on the cultlike structure of white supremacy and white supremacist indoctrination, especially through their use of Nordic neopaganism
to prefaceāari aster is a Jewish man. heās writing this story from someone directly affected by white supremacy (and if one doubts this: feel free to look at the white supremacist response to the film! it wasnāt positive)
anyway, the hƄrga are canonically neo-pagan white supremacists. ari aster has pointed this out in interviews explicitly, but if one pays attention and is familiar with white supremacy, it becomes painfully obvious.
many of the runes used commonly used among white supremacists.
the odal especially is seen throughout the film, down to the tables they sit at being arranged in an odal. this rune is used constantly by white supremacists to denote a love of White Heritage. whatās especially interesting about the use of the Odal is thisāthe particular way itās drawn on many tapestries has the inclusion of āwingsā or lines on the ends. The odal is most commonly drawn without these wings in modern usage....except, of course, used in the context of white supremacy. the odal with wings was the insignia of the 7th SS Volunteer Mountain Division Prinz Eugen, and is still commonly used by neo Nazi groups today.
their leader, an old white woman who snarls about The Black One, wears the ansuz, despite them not seeming to worship Odināthis is, of course, another symbol used by white supremacists (hell, thereās a hate group that has a prominent presence in Sweden but exists worldwide calls the Soldiers of Odin). the inclusion of The Secret Nazi Language of the Uthark in the set at the beginning of the movie makes it clear this was intentional
also, thereās not a lot of evidence for the āage old ritualsā they use (the Ƥttestupa and blood eagle) actually existingāthe idea of them though? absolutely relished by many white supremacists.
just getting into the rest of the movieāthe colors are blindingly white, bright, and the characters of color stand out clearly against it. josh, who is the more obviously respectful and dedicated academic, is deliberately passed over in favor of Christian by the harga for information for their dissertations, and Christian outright rips off his topic. they kill the white characters for disrespecting the cultās heritageābut kill the characters of color to show their devotion.
the movie is a MASTERFUL commentary on how white supremacists grow their numbersāthey donāt start out with swastikas and genocide. they start out with a kind word, with a promise of understanding, of community.
āi lost my parents tooā pele tells dani. he draws for her, he wishes her a happy birthday. the women dance with Dani, dress her up, comfort her. the cult makes her the may queen. she feels safe with them. she feels comforted, wanted. has an emotional bond with them, even as they slowly isolate her, and prime her to believe what they do.
as a Jewish person myselfāthis was all intentional. the horror for me isnāt just the cult. itās that this happens every day, and more often than people would think. the horror is in the knowledge that this is how people are radicalized to scream āJews will not replace usā, or shoot up a synagogue.
anyway. hereās a couple articles from POC what also talk about this.
kianamaiart
izzy806
jacobvanloon
snowghoul
