Near the end, the bus driver invites a waitress to see the Japanese movie Yojimbo (1961) with him. This film is a remake of that.
Sony Pictures Entertainment picked up the US rights to the film after its completion, and considered giving the pic a theatrical release through their TriStar Pictures arm, but after the box-office failure of Double Team, Knock Off and Universal Soldier: The Return (all Sony releases) they ultimately sent the film straight to DVD.
Pat Morita and Jean-Claude Van Damme both starred in the Bloodsport franchise.