Director and co-writer Christopher Crowe helped toss out dummies in the sequence with Scott Glenn in the helicopter. Crowe was supposed to have a safety cord attached to the helicopter to prevent him from falling out, but found out after the sequence was shot that said cord was never attached to the helicopter.
Gregory Hines improvised the stuff about crushing a man's testicles during an interrogation scene, and the moment in which he gives the middle finger to an angry crowd.
Shot in the actual red light districts of Bangkok, Thailand.
The temperature peaked at 115 or 120 degrees Fahrenheit on several days during shooting. Also, since this film was made on a tight budget and schedule, production ran six days a week with an average of sixteen or seventeen hours per day.
Although Willem Dafoe is seen carrying a 3rd Generation Colt Detective Special 38, the gun was not manufactured until 1973. CID Agents frequently carried a snub nosed S&W model 10 38 Special, as well as the adjustabke sighted model 15. The 1911A1 45 was seldom carried by rear echelon personnel. Oddly, it was not common to find concealment holsters for them. Although there would have been some latitude for personally owned firearms, few agents carried them as their jobs largely involved paperwork, phone calls, interviews and escort.