The film is a rendering of French crime writer Georges Simenon?s novel of the same name. The screenplay was written by Tarr and his long-time collaborator László Krasznahorkai, one of Hungary?s greatest living authors.
The production features an international cast, including British actresses Tilda Swinton and Leah Williams, Czech actor Miroslav Krobot, and Hungarians János Derzsi, István Lénárt and Ági Szirtes.
Filming is continuing in Hungary, and Tarr insists some difficult scenes still be shot on the French island of Corsica. The director expects to finish shooting by the end of the year.
Tarr found international renown with his seven-hour film ?Satan?s Tango? (1994), based on Krasznahorkai?s gloomy novel about life in Hungary?s countryside. Tarr's last film, ?The Werckmeister Harmonies? (2000) was also based on a Krasznahorkai novel, again about the melancholy pervading a small town on Hungary?s Great Plain.
