The Bodyguard

Back to the main review

What’s the Story?

Kevin Costner is Frank Farmer, a former Secret Service Agent for President Reagan who's left government for private security work. His latest gig is to be THE BODYGUARD for an international pop star and actress, Rachel Marron (Whitney Houston, seemingly playing a variation of herself). At first he declines, but after her manager and publicist explain that unbeknown to Rachel, she's been receiving death threats from a stalker, he relents and starts overhauling her security, dictating rules about her outings and otherwise taking control over her safety. Eventually, Rachel finds that control attractive, and the two start an uneasy romance while trying to escape a killer's attacks.

Is It Any Good?

The reason The Bodyguard scored more than $410 million worldwide is not Costner and Houston's (inexistent) chemistry. It's about the accompanying soundtrack, which to date stands as the highest selling in movie history and features six songs by Houston, including "Queen of the Night," a remake of Chaka Khan's "I'm Every Woman," "I've Got Nothing," and, of course, her signature cover of Dolly Parton's "I Will Always Love You." Although her songs make up half of the soundtrack, she is credited for the album's popularity, which in turn drove people to see the film.

Houston's performance is strengthened by the fact that Oscar-nominated Rachel sings all of the soundtrack's key songs on camera, instead of just having the songs play over scenes. Without Houston's powerful voice, the love story is reduced to schmaltzy dialogue, zero heat between the leads, and Farmer's unexplained obsession with swords and knives. Regardless of whether you're a Houston fan, her talent as a singer is what makes the movie halfway watchable. When she's not singing, there's a temptation to fast-forward.