Obsession as Love
Igor keeps going to extreme lengths to prove his love to Ewa, including murder. He never tries to empathize with her thoughts, or tries to find a fault in himself. He feels guilty the only time he gets such thoughts. The thought that Ewa could be actually afraid of him or not in love with him doesn’t occur to him. He is infuriated when he receives no response from her after murdering one person after another. It’s the obsession of a person that makes him go to such lengths. He is at peace after murdering her, and no longer heartbroken or jealous.
Cinema as business
Although cinema is thought of an art form to bring people’s thoughts to masses, cinema is treated like a business by the most people including those who genuinely believe in the greatness of art that is cinema. Javits is a film distributor who is showered with most reverence simply due to his success rate at distributing film even though that is a front for laundering black money. Maureen makes art films but understands the working of an industry and makes compromises that question at her integrity. The Director and the Star often remark how their lives are no longer their own, they have become a brand to make sure that their films are seen by people.
Classicism
The Superclass is frequently mentioned as well as their role in the festival even though they are not directly related or involved in the process of manufacture of a film. They are described as shallow and with little intellect. They have no need to work as they are already too rich to have people to take care of those needs. They are gifted with exclusive items ahead of their launch so as to advertise these things as a symbol for luxury and opulence. Even though they are hardly ever brought into the centerstage of the story, they play a huge role in creating the pretentious atmosphere at Cannes.
Ambition
All the people who had arrived at Cannes are to get one thing or another, except for Jasmine who is there simply to work with her partner/designer. Characters like Igor, Gabriela, Maureen are superficial and are ready to go to any lengths to get what they want even at the cost of another person’s life or their own integrity.
Human Nature
Coelho tries to explain the human nature and its complexity through the different characters. Igor, Gabriela, Maureen are ambitious and are ready to go to whatever lengths to achieve what they want. They are corrupted but suffer with self-righteousness. They don’t do things because of their choices but due to their wants. They can’t rest until they have achieved that. Ewa and Jasmine constantly hide their feelings instead of sharing them, leading to dire consequences.
