Mad Max: who's waiting for Nux?

[sapote]

This is just cut because it's a spoiler, it's one sentence instead of my usual postnuclear encyclopedia: Today I'm obsessed with the way that Nux keeps begging to know if he's awaited in Valhalla. Who does he think is waiting for him? Because it seems like there's someone he really wants to see.

Comments

[kore]

Awww NUX. Given the backstory, maybe his mum?

[sapote]

I don't know if girls go to Valhalla. :-/ Did they in the Norse myth? Not that I expect Joe to have researched it.

I imagine a sort of Alai to his Ender, personally - some older friend who took him under his wing when he was a scared warpup who died heroic a few years back.

[kore]

Hunh, I thought they did? Maybe not. I think I was remembering Valkyries, altho they seem to be more celestial waitresses in Valhalla, sigh. This was interesting http://blog.britishmuseum.org/2014/04/19/viking-women-warriors-and-valkyries/ Apparently half the warriors go to Odin and half to Freya, maybe she gets the women? (altho they probably wouldn't've been 50%?). Butyeah, given the worldbuilding in the movie, probably only men are in Joe's Valhalla (ack, what a concept).

[sapote]

I like the idea that Joe was working off the silly sexist view of Vikings now overturned by science - much like someone basing their worldview on books that misunderstand wolves' social structure, or something.

I kind of liked that there was no trotting-out of the idea that Nux wanted to die because the afterlife had girls in it; it's definitely a place they could have gone, but it seemed more like he just wanted to be a hero and not have so many health problems. (My brother and I were discussing whether someone of Nux's age/rank/life expectancy would have much idea of heterosexual sex, and my brother's stance was that the youngish warboys probably have about the grasp on the whole thing that extremely sheltered middle schoolers who think babies are maybe caused by pee have. I'm not sure if I buy it generally, but I could see it for Nux.)

[sapote]

I like the idea that the actual Vikings had a girl Valhalla. That warms my heart.

[rabid_bookwyrm]

So I just saw it again and I was thinking about this post - here's what I got:

- Joe looks at him near the beginning of the movie, and the camera work shows us that this is a very important thing for Nux. He argues with Slit: "He looked at me" "He looked at your bloodbag" "He looked at me!" "He was scanning the horizon" "I am awaited in Walhalla*" and then he pulls the steering wheel off and guns it.

*Walhalla - It's spelled that way on the soundtrack, and there is also a Walhalla, Victoria in Australia, a mining town.

- He offers to Joe to get on the War Rig and "pike her in the spine." Joe tells him to put a bullet in her skull. Nux asks, "I am awaited in Walhalla?" "Stop the Rig, and I myself will carry you to the gates of Walhalla." The look in Nux's eyes during this scene is killer, it's so hopeful and heartfelt.

- He's talking to Capable on the back of the Rig. This one I can't quite quote, but she asks something about Walhalla and Nux answers that he would ride with the warriors of old or something to that effect.

So I didn't get the impression that it was about seeing someone in particular as much as about joining the ranks, belonging. We know he's pretty good at what he does because he has a car - it's his car, it's got his name on it (brake pedal, which confuses the hell out of me). He's the driver, Slit is the lancer, and to go from lancer to driver would be a promotion.

[sapote]

IDK, I like the idea that there's someone specific who he used to look up to who died historic who he wants to get to see again. I mean, it's not a theory I'd throw down for, but I think someone could definitely write a story about how there was an older warboy who he looked up to when he was a war pup who was important to him and is the reason he's so willing to buy the Valhalla thing - because otherwise he'll never see him again.