20 years after the film's release, Todd Haynes said its themes - disease and immunity in a post-industrial landscape and how recovery is a burden often put on victims of illness - were even more relevant than they were when the film was released.
When it came time for Julianne Moore to record the director's commentary for the 2003 DVD release, this was the first time the lead actress had seen the movie in its entirety.
Multiple chemical sensitivity is an unrecognized and controversial diagnosis characterized by chronic symptoms attributed to exposure to low levels of commonly used chemicals. Symptoms are typically vague and non-specific. They may include fatigue, headaches, nausea, and dizziness. Although these symptoms can be debilitating, MCS is not recognized as an organic, chemical-caused illness by the World Health Organization, American Medical Association, nor any of several other professional medical organizations. Blinded clinical trials show that people with MCS react as often and as strongly to placebos as they do to chemical stimuli; the existence and severity of symptoms is seemingly related to perception that a chemical stimulus is present. Commonly attributed substances include scented products (e.g. perfumes), pesticides, plastics, synthetic fabrics, smoke, petroleum products, and paint fumes.
Filming occurred right after the 1994 Northridge Earthquake which heavily damaged large parts of Los Angeles. The threat of aftershocks and damage to filming locations (such as the community center used for the Wrenwood scenes) kept the production team jittery.