Yep, tool of the state. But after, he allies with whomever his conscience, and circumstance, allows and then moves on. He could've been a king at the end of Thunder Road but turns his back on it and goes his own way. I feckin' love that.
MM2 in particular seems (to me) to demonstrate anarchy rather well - the choice between a dog-eat-dog society or a cooperative one: he helps one "mini-state"above another but, in the end, chooses neither.
It's probably not what the film makers had in mind but it's an interpretation that works for me
