The story incorporates the Native American Wendigo myth via scout George (Joseph Runningfox) and his sister Martha (Sheila Tousey), but these elements serve the survival narrative rather than driving identity-focused arcs. Director Antonia Bird explicitly framed the film as a critique of manifest destiny, European colonialism, genocide, capitalism, and competitive power structures, stating that cannibalism metaphorically represents 'consume or be consumed' in contemporary America and linking it to addiction and societal misfits. These themes appear in subtext and satirical moments, such as the military outpost's misfit soldiers and the voracious hunger paralleling expansionism, but remain secondary to the gory, comedic horror premise.