Unreliability of Technology
Throughout the film, Gilliam paints the portrait of a world run by technology that everyone relies on. And we see the technology constantly breaking down, from Sam's alarm clock which is meant to wake him up for work and doesn't, to his air conditioning which breaks, to the elevator at work which malfunctions on him. Gilliam is able to portray a world where human beings rely on machines to do so much for them that they lose their ability to do things for themselves thus becoming machinery themselves. They are only able to do what they are "programmed" to do and when they step outside of this programming they instantly become a threat and need to be "fixed" like any other machine.
Bureaucracy
Among the main themes seen in this film is the issue of bureaucracy. Decisions are made by state officials and thus the power of the people is completely taken away. Sam can't even get his air conditioner fixed without the men from Central Services filling out a request form to proceed with repairs. At every stop there is a mountain of paperwork that has to be filled out in order for someone to carry on with their day. This system of documentation does two things. First, it disempowers people from doing anything because of the time it takes to even be heard. Second, it creates a paper trail on every single person that can be held against them which is a way of oppressing a community so that the ones already in power can stay in power. The level to which Gilliam takes the bureaucracy is so heightened it becomes absurd, but it points to a very real issue in society that exists to this day, that people are controlled more than they believe they are. And they are unwilling to do anything about it because of the effort it will take to get through the mountain of paperwork and people in order to even get face to face with someone who can even listen to them.
Responsibility
One theme that stands out in a brutal way is that of responsibility. The brutality comes from the murder of Mr. Buttle who was wrongly accused. Everyone who is involved in his death blames another department, and it isn't the fact that a man died it's the fact that it isn't their department that made the mistake. They only care that they are able to keep their job and not that someone has been murdered for no reason. Gilliam's theme is pointing towards society's inability to see the human being in the midst of the procedure and for anyone to accept responsibility for wrong doing. It's rampant in culture and this film takes it to a level that an audience can understand the injustice being perpetrated on an innocent man and family, and the lack of remorse and any action taken to repent for the wrongdoing.
