Although set entirely in Canada, this movie was mostly shot in the Dolomites mountain region of Italy. A Farewell to Arms (1957) was filmed in the same region at the same time, and the actors, actresses, and crew members of both movies frequently relaxed together in the evenings after filming.
Barbara Murray was cast as Jean Lucas at short notice after the original choice dropped out because of health problems.
Dirk Bogarde hated making this film, and made no secret of how upset he was when, some ten years later, it got very high ratings after being shown on television.