Trivia

This is the first film to use rear projection for backgrounds.

The film was once considered lost, but has since been rediscovered and restored. It was released on DVD in 2008 as part of the now out-of-print boxed set "Murnau, Borzage and Fox."

Joel McCrea tested for the starring role but was rejected by director Frank Borzage.

Director Frank Borzage cunningly achieved his ethereal aesthetic by lending a touch of fantasy to the art direction of the earthly scenes as well as the sequences that occur in the afterlife. Another factor is Borzage's use of silence and sparseness to create an otherworldly feel. The initial pan reveal of the carnival setting, for example, appears idealized through the lack of patrons populating it. Later that evening, as Liliom and Julie become acquainted on the bench in the park, there is absolute silence even as the amusement park glows with activity beneath them. Liliom's desperation in the aftermath of being fired from the carousel is exaggerated through the all-encompassing view of the amusement park skyline outside Aunt Hilda's living room window. The outdoor settings, particularly the abandoned railroad junction where the robbery takes place, appear to trail off into oblivion, with no effort to effect a realistic sky, moon or stars.

While the film is now considered a masterpiece of surrealistic impressionism, it was a disappointment upon its original release, losing money at the box office and failing to garner a single Oscar nomination.