Although the first 100 minutes of the film are relaxed and humorous, it appears undercurrent and full of tension under the bedding of music and some shots, until finally Harry's sudden and thoughtful death, so it seems natural to classify it as crime and suspense. But I think its focus is still on human nature and ethics.
I personally think that the small islands in the film, the hidden private houses with flourishing flowers and trees, and the snakes that frequently appear in the film are a bit of the religious meaning of the Garden of Eden. Harry's appearance is very aggressive. In the memories of several flashbacks, he can see his control and possessiveness towards Marrianne. Therefore, his seemingly crazy accidental visit should actually be prepared, and even I finally suspected that he brought his daughter to seduce Paul-did he mention his daughter’s age when he first met at the airport? I really can't remember. In the end, Marrianne slapped Harry's daughter off at the airport. I thought she thought of this level. Of course, Penelope didn’t know about it at first, but she saw her father’s coffin before boarding the plane. Marrianne should have been caught. She woke up from the slap, her tears should be tears of regret for her father and herself.
Although Harry's death was related to Paul, the real reason was the tragedy caused by his willful and aggressive personality. After Marrianne and Paul were tempted separately (and they also guessed what they did the day before Harry died), they chose to forgive each other. Marrianne saw the snake again before heading to the police station the day after Harry died, and this time she took the initiative to pick it up and threw it out, implying that she no longer succumbed to the temptation. The two of them are an innocent pair in the film. Despite their mistakes, they were redeemed.
At the end of the film, the police officer restricted them from leaving the island, so after sending off the penelope, they were followed by a police car on the way back home. When the police officer was satisfied with the autograph requirement and happily said "you are very nice people" to Marrianne, It can be seen that although Paul may not be innocent in the legal sense, he has been pardoned on the moral level, so Paul finally laughed under the influence of Marrianne.
The last thing I want to say is that the films of European directors are probably inseparable from the metaphysical themes of ethics, morality, religion, and philosophy. I agree that some short comments mentioned that the meaning is too obscure. But I think it has a lot to do with casting. Another Italian movie you watched recently, youth, also opened the Hollywood lineup. This is probably a helpless move for European movies to fight for the box office, but the effect is not good. The overstretched performances of Hollywood actors often dilute/obscure the subtle meaning of the film-this is a point where young actors are worse than older actors. I think the most natural performer in this film is the Italian police officer.
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