There appears to be no truth in the rumor that spread in the 1980s to the effect that Richard Burton had so disliked this movie that he had bought the negative and had it destroyed so that no one would ever see it again. However, it is a very hard movie to see, despite its stars.
This movie was selected to screen in competition at the 22nd Berlin International Film Festival in 1972, where it was nominated for three awards including the Golden Bear for Best Film. The movie won two Bears there, a Silver Bear for Best Actress for Dame Elizabeth Taylor, and a Silver Bear for an Outstanding Artistic Contribution for actor and director Sir Peter Ustinov.
Famed mail-order lingerie business "Fredericks of Hollywood" received on-screen credit for some of Dame Elizabeth Taylor's costumes.
The movie was shot in Mexico due to budgetary and financial restraints.
Richard Burton's diaries reveal that he was sure that this movie would be a huge box-office hit, something he and Dame Elizabeth Taylor needed in 1972. It was, however, one of their biggest financial failures.