Dedicated to the memory of Matti Pellonpää (who was frequently cast by director Aki Kaurismäki) for whom the main role was originally intended. The child who can be seen in the photo is Pellonpää, a homage.
The film was originally meant to be a direct sequel to Shadows in Paradise (1986), with Matti Pellonpää reprising his famous role as Nikander. Since Pellonpää died during pre-production, Aki Kaurismäki rewrote the entire script. However, the characters played by Kati Outinen and Sakari Kuosmanen still retain the names they had in the previous film (Ilona and Melartin, respectively).
Although most of the films directed by Aki Kaurismäki take place in Helsinki, which is a bilingual city, this is the first of his movies where someone speaks Swedish.
One of the restaurants in this film is named "Dubrovnik". Scenes set in that restaurant were filmed at Yrjönkatu 18, which at time were not an actual restaurant. However, in summer 2005 at this location opened restaurant G18. Bit later the Andorra cinema, which is co-owned by Kaurismäki brothers, was converted into new form and one of the theatre halls was changed into Dubrovnik Lounge & Lobby.
In the protagonists' new restaurant venture at the end, when at first no one will come in, finally, the first customer, then second as a his later arriving companion - both are significant real life luminaries of Finnish film: Atte Blom and Peter von Bagh, respectively.