Ernest Hemingway hated this interpretation of his novel, as he felt it was overly romantic. That didn't stop him, however, from becoming lifelong friends with Gary Cooper, whom he met several years later. In fact, it was Hemingway who would insist that Cooper be cast in the lead of the adaptation of his novel For Whom the Bell Tolls (1943) 11 years later. However, the two made a point of never discussing this film.
Censorship problems arose from early versions of the script, which included phases of Catherine's actual childbirth and references to labor pains, gas, her groaning and hemorrhaging. After these were removed, the MPPDA approved the script, and even issued a certificate for re-release in 1938 when the censorship rules were more strictly enforced. Still, the film was rejected in British Columbia and in Australia, where Hemingway's book was also banned.
Fredric March was originally set to play the lead, but when he discovered that director John Cromwell was being replaced by Frank Borzage, he refused to do the picture. The part was then given to Gary Cooper.
To the modern discerning eye, the use of miniatures is apparent in some scenes. If one looks very closely at the first scene, ambulance trucks driving up a winding mountain road will be noted to be well crafted miniatures.
The Production Code was in place when the film was re-released in 1938. Consequently, 12 minutes of footage had to be excised for it to meet code standards. Luckily, producer David O. Selznick had acquired an original negative, as he was so keen to buy the remake rights, so the original cut has been preserved (Selznick finally acquired the rights in 1955, making his own version two years later with Rock Hudson and Jennifer Jones).