Several of the extras suffered from heat stroke and illnesses due to the incredibly hot 2006 summer.
Major Talbot Mercer Papineau (Justin Trudeau) notes that his corps commander told him that he expected him to be Prime Minister one day. Trudeau later served as the 23rd Prime Minister of Canada from November 4, 2015 to March 14, 2025.
The movie's release date is set to coincide with the 90th anniversary of the Battle of Vimy Ridge in 1917; also one of the key battles depicted in the movie.
The filming of the trenches and the battles was done at the Saint Bruno military range 30 minutes east of Montreal, Quebec in the summer of 2006. The field was transformed into a real war camp and the extras (who were descendants of real first world war soldiers) were treated like soldiers and lived as they had.