Trivia

According to David Bowie, Nagisa Ôshima directed the Japanese actors with great detail. But when it came to the British actors, they were told to "do whatever it is you people do".

Reportedly, Japanese actor-composer Ryuichi Sakamoto fainted when he saw this film for the first time.

Tom Conti does not speak a word of Japanese. He learned his Japanese dialog phonetically.

Lourens van der Post, the author of this film's source novel "The Seed and The Sower", once said of this filmed adaptation of his novel: "This is a great and deeply moving film. The only war film I have ever seen that does not exploit the surface drama and horrifics of war, but penetrates into the origins and meaning of war in the human spirit. Moreover, it is honest and brave, and looks with the same unevasive and unblinking eyes into the character of Japanese and Europeans alike."

The distinctive music score and soundtrack in this film is notable. It was composed by Ryuichi Sakamoto and it is considered to be the breakthrough movie to which he and his music became well-known around the world.