The buildings where the foggy final showdown takes place, are actually part of Bokor Hill Station, a colonial hill resort town built by the French in the 1920s. This site, on a mountain above Kampot in Southern Cambodia, included a church and Grand Bokor Palace, a hotel and casino. They were taken over by the Cambodian monarchs after the French left, and were a Khmer Rouge stronghold against the Vietnamese (the shelling is still visible, there are no windows left intact). Today the buildings are abandoned, crumbling and covered in red moss, but can still be visited.
The black Mercedes-Benz, appearing in the movie, was built in 1973, and was formerly owned by the infamous leader of the Khmer Rogue, Pol Pot.
The fruit that Sok (Kem Sereyvuth) takes back for his wife is durian. This green, soccer-ball-sized fruit has a green spiky rind and yellow, custard-like sweet flesh. It is famous for its odour. In fact, it stinks so much that it is forbidden to carry it on certain airlines, as well as in Singapore's public transport system. This is why Jimmy (Matt Dillon) asks "Is it supposed to smell like that?"
Matt Dillon's writing debut, and his first directed theatrical film. His directorial debut was an episode of the television series Oz (1997).
Many of those who portray minor characters in the film are expatriates living in Cambodia, rather than professional actors.