This movie featured a "Make my day" line. This line was popularized in Sudden Impact (1983) and was first used in Vice Squad (1982). Interestingly, co-screenwriter Dean Riesner has screenwriting credits for Dirty Harry (1971), The Enforcer (1976), and Sudden Impact (1983) (uncredited).
A poster for director Tom Holland's previous film Fright Night can be seen in one of the background scenes where two dope dealers are coming out of a movie theater.
This movie had several similarities with Beverly Hills Cop (1984). First, the central character is a wise-cracking street-smart Detective at odds with the uppercrust of Hollywood or Beverly Hills. Both movies' main movie posters show them holding a silver revolver with a car; Harold Faltermeyer composed the score for both movies.