Director Stephan Elliott had originally envisioned an older woman to play Joanna Eris. However, after Ashley Judd campaigned for the part, he relented.
One of the four films that received an "F" CinemaScore from audiences upon their release in 2000, along with Dr. T and the Women (2000), Lost Souls - Verlorene Seelen (2000) and Lucky Numbers - Ein Wetterfrosch auf Abwegen (2000).
Director Stephan Elliott fought the film's financier, Mark Damon, over the tone of the film. Elliott envisioned the film as a dark thriller with sex and random lashings of violence. Damon wanted a more A-to-B thriller that he could sell worldwide. Ironically, many of the Asian markets that bought the film wanted a sexier and more violent version of the film.
The detective character in the novel has no name and is a much older and less successful man than the hero played by Ewen McGregor in this film. The plot takes place over a much longer time-span than this version and - crucially - there is essentially no explanation of the heroine's murderous activities.
The director originally wanted Massive Attack to do the music for the film, but the group had broken up by the time the film was ready for scoring.