The original title, "Lust och fägring stor" ("Great Lust and Beauty"), is taken from the second verse of Swedish hymn "Den blomstertid nu kommer" ("Now the time of blossoming arrives"), which is traditionally sung in schools before closing for the summer holiday:
"Den blomstertid nu kommer/ med lust och fägring stor. Du nalkas, ljuva sommar, då gräs och gröda gror. Med blid och livlig värma/ till allt som varit dött, sig solens strålar närma, och allt blir återfött."
("The flowering season's here now/ With great lust and beauty. Delightful summer's near now/ When grass and plants deploy. The gentle sun's warmth coaxes/ Fresh growth in what's been dead, As soon as she approaches, Reborn life lies ahead.")
"Den blomstertid nu kommer/ med lust och fägring stor. Du nalkas, ljuva sommar, då gräs och gröda gror. Med blid och livlig värma/ till allt som varit dött, sig solens strålar närma, och allt blir återfött."
("The flowering season's here now/ With great lust and beauty. Delightful summer's near now/ When grass and plants deploy. The gentle sun's warmth coaxes/ Fresh growth in what's been dead, As soon as she approaches, Reborn life lies ahead.")
In one scene, which did not make it into the film, Johan Widerberg would sit on the edge of the bed after sexual intercourse. In the overhead mirror he would see Marika Lagercrantz behind him, still naked. "Johan," cried Bo Widerberg, "feel the disgust of that aged body."
It took six years of screenwriting for Bo Widerberg before production started. The project was announced in 1988, but because of the lack of financing it was postponed till 1994.
Bo Widerberg's son Johan Widerberg stars as the boy "Stig".