All The Light We Cannot See was released on Netflix, and what a show this was. It was set in 1944 in France, which had been occupied by Germany. We followed the tragic events of the Second World War whilst also witnessing the personal mission of one officer’s selfish gain in order to retrieve a jewel that was said to bring eternal life to its possessor.
I thought this show was really good. I would have actually liked it to have been longer than what it was, maybe six or eight episodes.
The score behind this show was phenomenal. I’ve not been moved by so many pieces of music in such a long time. There was a repeated motif that would often occur when care, love, and affection were being shown, and there was another that was more inspiring and uplifting.
I’ll be breaking down and explaining the key questions from the series, its connection to the book, if this story was real, and what it all meant.
Here is All The Light We Cannot See Ending Explained:
All The Light We Cannot See Ending Explained:
Let’s talk about The Meaning Of Marie Getting Rid Of The Sea Of Flames. While All The Light We Cannot See Ending could be interpreted in many different ways, for me, it all goes back to the part of the show where Daniel and Marie were walking on the beach, and he said to her that the sound of the waves coming into the shore was something which sounded like the world taking a breath. And Marie even acknowledged her father at that moment and said that she liked that definition.
Marie with her father (Credits: Netflix)
We never truly knew how much of A superstitious person Marie was. But I presumed that she originally had a similar mindset to her father, one of science. However, her picking up the jewel with the cloth to ensure that she didn’t have direct skin contact with it most likely implied that she believed in the curse that contact brought along with it. This is most likely due to knowing that her father held it in his bare hands, and he ultimately met deadly consequences.
Whilst his death wasn’t tied to the jewel, like how Von Rumpel connected Marie’s blindness as a consequence of the curse, Marie might have connected the devastation to her family to the curse.
Once she arrived at the beach after walking through a liberated St. Marlowe and witnessed the happiness and freedom that the citizens felt, we saw that she threw the jewel into the sea as far away as she possibly could. This, to me, was almost like a reset. The jewel caused her own family’s personal war and battle during a time when the world was at war itself. It meant that it would no longer taint the world, and its curse wouldn’t be able to inflict itself onto another being.
As it was said that the waves crashing marked the world taking a breath and St. Marlow also taking a breath at that moment due to being liberated, the throwing of the jewel into the sea also meant that Marie could too. As she wouldn’t be plagued with the superstition or the thought that somebody else could one day be going after her due to the sea of flames.
There’s that, and there’s also the idea that with her Father and Uncle Etienne being dead. Marie getting rid of the jewel and returning it to the sea could be her own personal way of saying goodbye to them as it mattered to her father.
The Meaning Of Daniel’s Death
Daniel was a father who would do anything for his child, Marie. It was made most apparent when he was taken when he arrived in Paris as part of his plan to throw the German authorities off of his scent when it came to locating him.
Daniel being tortured (Credits: Netflix)
We saw that Von Rumpel was looking for the jewel, and in finding Daniel, he worked out that the jewel was kept with his daughter. The test was put to Daniel to reveal the location of where Marie was, or he’d be killed
During this time, we saw that Daniel didn’t reveal the address at all. Instead, he was tortured for three hours before he was ultimately killed when deemed useless, something which was horrific. But it did answer the question of if Daniel was ever going to be returning to Marie. This part of the story was focused on “Is pain stronger than love?” and in this instance, it wasn’t.
Daniel was prepared to die for his daughter, no matter what pain came his way. We saw that whilst Marie was growing up, Daniel did everything to ensure that she lived a life that wasn’t compromised due to the fact that she was blind, and he would have done anything for her to keep her safe, something which we saw him doing when he ultimately died for his daughter’s protection.
In all of Marie’s broadcasts that she’d do on the radio, she would leave a message for him in the hopes that he’d be listening. And what that showed us was how much love they both had for one another. But more particularly, that their love was one of those pieces of light that we couldn’t see. Something that transcends darkness, and despite not being able to see it, it was something that was present throughout all of their time together and even when apart. So much so that Marie even said that he’d be with her until the end.
It was said that late lasts forever in a piece of coal. Darkness lasts not even one second when the light is turned on. So it showed that even in the darkest of times, the love would always shine bright and be present whether he was there or not.
Werner with the radio (Credits: Netflix)
What Happened To Werner?
Werner is the main touch point and our understanding of somebody who is participating in a war that they didn’t want to be a part of. He was deemed to be a genius, and his love for radio was something which meant that he listened to shortwave 1310, which is the frequency that Marie was broadcasting on in the present day, and the professor was when he was growing up.
At the end of All The Light We Cannot See, we see that Werner was one of the main reasons that Marie was saved. His distraction was what took von Rumpel’s attention away from her. And it meant that he had to go after him.
Marie ultimately returned the favor and killed Von Rumpel before he got the chance to kill Werner, and it was from here that we saw their deep connection and love of listening to Shortwave 1310. And the fact that despite being on two completely opposite sides of the war, they had commonality and a connection that transcended this world and all that made sense.
With the Americans arriving and liberating St. Marlowe, it meant that Werner had to surrender to the troops, and he’d eventually be dealt a punishment in the long run. Werner said to Marie that he would always be listening if she broadcasted and that when the time came if she wanted him there, he’d return, something which we never got to see. But readers of the book will know what happened to the character, and this is your spoiler warning.
So once Werner was taken prisoner, he developed an illness and whilst in a state of mind that wasn’t like his own. He walked into a minefield and caused an explosion to go off, something which ultimately led him to be killed.
Werner with Marie (Credits: Netflix)
So even though that isn’t in the show, if we’re looking at what could happen to the character, this is a fate that was met. However, there were some key differences between the novel and the show, so it’s not to say that it would have happened this time round.
The Symbolism Of Con Rumpel’s Greed And Death
Von Rumpel was a man on a mission, and it was one that was motivated by greed and utter desperation. He was diagnosed with an illness 3 years before when we saw him, and he was slowly dying. This is why he was so interested in the Sea of Flames jewel. Because it was said to promise to possess eternal life, and he hoped that it would cure his illness, something that Von Rumpel wanted.
What was poetic about von Rumpel’s death was that in his dying moments, he came face to face with the jewel that he had spent the entirety of the show trying to get his hands on. He was a matter of centimeters away, but by then, it was too late.
What von Rumpel’s greed showed me was that he was exploiting the state of the world and his position and setting off on a mission for his own personal gain. Highlighting that more horrific acts can occur in the already harsh, hostile, and brutal environment that exists.
