History Film / TheBodyguard

Originally written by Creator/LawrenceKasdan for Steve [=McQueen=] and Diana Ross in TheSeventies, the project was taken up by Costner fifteen years later, with Costner and Kasdan as producers and Mick Jackson as director. This film was a huge success, as was the soundtrack, which sold in the bazillions (it's widely considered to be the top selling movie soundtrack ''of all time''), all fueled by the unbelievable popularity of Houston's rendition of "I Will Always Love You," [[CoveredUp originally]] by Music/DollyParton from ''Theatre/TheBestLittleWhorehouseInTexas''. In addition, the movie's instrumental music was marvelously done by Music/AlanSilvestri (and finally released on its own album a mere ''21 years'' later). In 2013, the film headed to stage in the form of a JukeboxMusical featuring many of Houston's hits.

* AlcoholInducedIdiocy: [[spoiler:Nikki hired an assassin in a bar to kill her sister while so drunk she can't even recall ''who'' she hired.]]

* AmIJustAToyToYou: Rachel has this reaction when Frank expresses regrets after having sex with her. His reasoning is that as her bodyguard a sexual relationship would compromise his ability to protect her, but she's still angry and hurt.

* BlackDudeDiesFirst: When Henry, Rachel's chauffeur, reacts with incredulity that Frank's adding to his duties, Frank tells him that in his experience, when shit goes down, the client's usually okay. "Who gets shot? The cocky black chauffeur." That [[ScareEmStraight gets his attention]].

* BreakTheHaughty: Rachel starts the film as a diva who questions hiring a bodyguard. By the end of the film, she has been put through the wringer so hard that she spends most of the climax jumping at shadows ([[ProperlyParanoid which actually saves her life, when she signals Frank that she thinks something is wrong... and it is]]). [[spoiler:Nikki gets her moment as well when she finds out that she gave the order to kill Rachel to a PsychoForHire willing to kill her nephew if that helps him kill Rachel.]]

* GreenEyedMonster: Rachel's sister Nikki is envious of the former's success. [[spoiler: It is later revealed that she hired a hitman to kill her. But even after she sours on the idea when the hitman turns out to be willing to kill Rachel's son to get close to her, there isn't much Nikki can do since she doesn't know who the hitman is.]]
* HeelFaceDoorSlam: [[spoiler: Nikki tries to call off her hitman but he kills her]].

* LockedOutOfTheLoop: When Frank first meets Rachel he quickly learns that she isn't the person who hired him and doesn't know there's someone stalking her. Her team was withholding that information from her so she wouldn't quit working, but she learns the truth anyway and is isn't happy she wasn't informed sooner.
** Later on Frank learns that it was [[spoiler: Nikki]] who hired the hitman but he never tells Rachel to protect her feelings.

* NiceJobFixingItVillain: The stalker's antics lead Rachel's entourage to hire Frank, and later when the stalker contacts her personally it alarms her enough to start taking Frank's security advice serious. [[spoiler: This all makes things much more difficult for the professional assassin who's ''actually'' trying to kill her.]]

* IronicEcho: Played for Horror: Rachel's most recent song, which even got an Academy Award nomination, is titled "I Have Nothing". The stalker's letters go: "You've got everything. ''I've'' got nothing. And you're going to die for that."

* AmIJustAToyToYou?: Rachel has this reaction when Frank expresses regrets after having sex with her. His reasoning is that as her bodyguard a sexual relationship would compromise his ability to protect her, but she’s still angry and hurt.

* ProperlyParanoid: This is pretty much Frank's main personality trait.