Children of Paradise ending explained

What happens

Lacenaire kills Edouard, and Garance leaves Paris again, knowing Baptiste cannot abandon his wife and son. Baptiste chases her through the Mardi Gras crowd, but the carnival swallows her and he cannot reach her.

The last image

Baptiste struggles against the masked carnival crowd as Garance disappears into it, out of reach.

What it says

Garance cannot be owned, and Baptiste, the man who cannot speak in time, loses her to his own hesitation. The crowd stands for life's indifference: the stage can say what life won't allow, but the curtain comes down and everyone moves on.