Oshima originally intended there to be a scene where Max performs cunnilingus on Margaret, but ultimately decided it would be too risque for French cinema.
Co-writer Jean-Claude Carrière, producer Serge Silberman and actor Milena Vukotic were all frequent collaborators with Luis Buñuel, and Max My Love (1986) resembles his work in its understated, unsensational treatment of frequently outrageous events.