Despite having a credited composer, the film features almost exclusively recycled scores from other Cannon releases. Most notable The Delta Force.
This film is basically a filmed version of the original draft of the script that became Missing in Action 2: The Beginning (1985), with some minor changes. It even utilized some of the same film sets and props, which Cannon Films wanted to get their money's worth out of before they were torn down. Director Gideon Amir had worked as a line producer on the first two Missing in Action movies and was tasked with making this film.
David Carradine and Mako appeared together again in Kung Fu Fu: The Movie (1986), which was filmed directly after filming for this movie finished.
As it was common with Cannon Films to do, scores from previous Cannon films were reused in later ones. Here, portions of the score from Revenge of the Ninja were used, such as in the scene where Vinh pulls a knife on Cooper, or when Sparks pulls a gun on him.
The font used for subtitle scenes in this film is the exact same font used for subtitles in "Invasion USA," another Cannon film, released just one year earlier.