BODY GUARD SCHOOL
A good natured American Indian kid named Dan decides to drop out of college against his family’s wishes. His father, a career military man, expels him from the house for not keeping his word, but there is also a long standing clash between the two over Dan’s disregard and lack of respect for his American Indian heritage. Dan has a difficult time finding a place to stay, he is awkward and inexperienced with the street, however he no longer is subject to his father’s abuse. Since his mother died, his life has been in emotional turmoil and her absence has forced him to face the father that blames him for her death.
Dan finds a place at the homeless shelter and makes a place for himself. Dan is uncomfortable with the older men in the neighboring cots, but befriends another young man named Nico, and makes the best of it. As Dan sits there feeling discouraged, he sees an ad on the back of a magazine for a body guard school. His military father had shown him many things as a kid and he already knew a lot, why not get certified and be paid for guarding people? He talks his new friend Nico into signing up with him. If they can pass the course it would be a way for them both to get out of the street and get their own life.
Dan uses the rest of his college money to sign up both of them for body guard school. The first day of class they meet the intimidating instructor and his crew. The instructor can see the two young men are genuine newbies and singles them out, ridicules them. Since their skin is of a darker color, they find themselves in an awkward position among their fellow students. The two friends question whether they should continue, but they decide to stick it out and face the challenge no matter what comes.
The two friends take the bus from the homeless shelter to the first class of body guard school. On the way Nico is confronted by a menacing meth freak. Dan can see that Nico is not good with confrontation and steps in, taking out the freak in a single move. Nico is impressed and surprised at Dan’s physical abilities, but Dan simply says it’s something his father taught him as a kid, Indian Fighting.
Nico asks what Indian Fighting means, as Dan describes the fighting style of his tribe, he begins to recall the things his father taught him and deemed as sacred. The more Dan describes this fighting style to Nico, the more he realizes how much he had retained from his youth.
The first day in class sees Dan and Nico seated among a dozen other applicants as they wait for the instructor. The two friends can sense they are a bit different than the other applicants who have better clothes and a cavalier attitude indicative of student loans and a comfortable lifestyle. There also a few tough guys with a chip on their shoulder busting each other’s balls until the instructor bursts through the door and takes the front of the classroom.
The instructor is an overbearing blowhard named Randy Tillerson. Randy begins by outlining his extensive background and challenges anyone in the class to take his place at the front of the class, pointing to some of the big guys and asking each if they would like to try. Randy wants everyone to know who’s in charge and makes no bones about it, much the same way as a drill sergeant. Dan’s father had been a drill sergeant and could size up Randy for what he was, everyone else, even Nico, seemed enthralled with his presence.
Randy describes the entire bodyguard course, which includes a fighting class and a final that takes place in the Mojave Desert. It will be a true to life military operation where the students must protect the home camp from penetration or capture from the instructional staff. Dan recognizes the area on the map that Randy is using to detail how the operation will work. It’s a place his father would take him shooting and training in the fighting techniques of his tribe.
A young woman in the class notices Dan and offers both he and Nico a ride home. Her name Clara Settles, she is black girl that is athletic and ambitious, her goal is to join the Secret Service. When Clara sees where Dan and Nico live, she is surprised but understanding.
The next week at the fighting class, the applicants find themselves waiting at the side of a judo mat for Randy to begin his class. In the center of the mat is a punching dummy on a stand with the word “CLIENT” printed on the chest. Randy emerges and places himself in front of the class with arms crossed, he begins to describe the process of using distance to protect the client from a fanatical fan or physical assault. Randy asks if anyone has had any training and one of the big guys says he trained in Jiu Jitsu and Mixed Martial Arts. Randy scoffs at him and tells him to get up, and try and attack his client, all he has to do is touch the dummy. The big guy takes Randy up on his challenge and takes a place on the mat with Randy between he and the dummy.
The big guy feigns a few times then charges in with some flying punches. Randy stands his ground hitting the big guy in the side of the neck with his forearm, knocking him flat. Randy helps him up then has everyone pair off to learn some techniques. Some people are awkward and others are very adept, Randy goes about the room coaching and criticizing, being a bit abusive to those with less ability.
Randy can see Nico struggling with the technique and pushes aside Dan and steps in as Nico’s partner. Randy is rough on Nico and shows off as he pins Nico to the floor. Dan asks Randy if he can try it with him and Randy agrees, it is Randy who finds himself on the floor after Dan uses an old technique his father taught him. Randy is furious as he picks himself up, Clara is watching in amazement and utterly impressed with Dan’s show of force. Randy calms himself and tells Dan, “We’ll do this again”, before walking off and ending the class.
Finally, the last phase of the body guard course is at hand, all the applicants or ready for a trip deep into the California desert for their final test. Randy describes the operation: the students will have to create a perimeter to protect a fictional client. Randy and his staff will attempt to penetrate the perimeter and take the client. This will allow the students to pit their skills and ingenuity against Randy and his staff of professional body guards.
Everyone is gathered for the trip, each person bringing what they think will assist them in succeeding in defeating Randy and his men. Many of the students are anxious for a little payback after Randy’s bragging and posturing. Dan and Nico watch quietly, Clara is wondering what her role will be, not sure of her ability to complete this portion of the class. Dan is reassuring and indicates he has some plans of his own that should keep things fair and will watch out for her during their time in the desert.
On the trip there, Dan and Nico are riding with Randy and a new member of his staff they have not seen before. Randy and the new man with the gold earring are joking about the abilities of people in the class, they jokingly promise harsh treatment for the Dan and Nico when the time comes. Dan remains silent, Nico is distressed and afraid.
After unpacking and setting up their small headquarters in the middle of the Mohave brush, the students are brought together, military style, before their evening meal. The instructor informs them that later everyone will split up into pairs, each pair will be assigned to portion of the camp’s perimeter. The drill will last for 24 hours, each person in the pair standing watch for the other to rest. All students are subject to capture and detainment themselves should their performance be considered substandard.
If one of any pair is captured, it will be the responsibility of their partner to rescue them from the detainment camp a short distance away. Each captive will be interrogated in order to give the students real time experience. The exercise will begin in the morning, each pair will be adequately supplied and equipped for the day’s lesson that should end at sunrise the next day. Randy is very frank about how tough and unforgiving he will be and to be ready at all times, this is why they paid him for this, to make them professionals.
Dan overhears the instructors planning a surprise raid for the students in the middle of the night to terrorize everyone with tasers and mock kidnappings. By now, Dan and Nico have developed a healthy dislike for Randy and his crew and now seek to teach the instructors a lesson. They do not inform the other students who joined the abuse of the two friends since leaving for the desert.
The small camp consists of large tents with cots and the usual gear. Hidden inside the instructor’s tent is high tech gear such a handful of tasers, a pair of small but powerful binoculars, an infra-red sensor, radio phones and night vision equipment. Dan noticed this equipment on the way there and is able to take from the instructor’s tent while they are eating and one sleeps next to the equipment. Dan’s Indian stealth enables him to accomplish this, connecting him again to his lineage and ancestors.
Before Dan leaves, he picks up a roll of trip wire and ties it neck high across the back of tent where he leaves the flap open, then mounts one of Randy’s tee shirts on a stick outside the tent.
Dan returns to the chow table and Clara has noticed he was missing for a time. She begins to press Dan for some answers and he promises it will be clear very quickly, everything is in place. As he’s talking they hear Randy yell as is caught by Dan’s trip wire after discovering the theft of his tasers and equipment. Randy is embarrassed and enraged at the prank and demands to know who the perpetrators are. There is a red mark across his neck and his voice is not as strong. Dan and Nico remain silent, one of the students asks Randy about his intentions and begins to question Randy’s authority and knowledge, but Randy has no answer and goes back to his tent.
Clara now begins to doubt Randy and asks Dan if he knows what happened. Dan tells her to be ready to move as soon as Randy and his crew leave for their camp in the morning. He has a plan that will save everyone from Randy’s abuse and still pass the course. Clara agrees, but doubts all of the other students will follow, Dan indicates it will not matter.
Before the instructors leave, they place their “client”, a dummy in a chair, in the center of the camp. Randy laughs and compares the dummy to some of the people in the class. Randy advises that even if he captures the dummy, everyone will be evaluated on their performance and reactions and given an assessment of the performance. Randy joins the other instructors who wait with engines running to go to their alternate camp.
As the men roar off, Dan and Nico announce they have a plan, that this whole set up bogus and to join him in a pre-emptive attack on the instructor’s camp. A few of the big guys disagree and say they are staying to guard the dummy the others agree to come along. Dan and Nico gather the tasers and equipment the instructors had intended to use and a group of them go hiking off to the other camp, leaving two members who choose to stay.
The group of students led by Dan and Nico are able to take the camp and those their using the tasers and equipment. Randy and two others are not there, they have gone back to attack the student’s camp. Dan prepares a surprise for Randy’s return by tying some of the instructors to cross poles in front of a huge fire.
Randy returns to see the fire and his men tied up, he becomes enraged and pulls out the two students who had remained behind. They are beat up and are yelling about what Randy and his men had done to them. Randy is out of control and demands everyone obey his orders. Everyone refuses, but Dan offers him a deal: a hand to hand fight, winner take all. Randy jumps at the chance to fight Dan and they face off.
After a long struggle in which Dan recalls the moves his father taught him, he is able to beat Randy and pin him down. The two students are released through the fight when Clara steps up and uses the taser to free them. In the end a sheriff’s helicopter lights the camp and announces they had a call. One of the students speaks up and says he was able to get service, everyone laughs.
Dan and Nico become a members of the Secret Service and are assigned to the White House. Dan’s father is overwhelmed and is anxious to meet and forgive his son for all that has happened between them.
END© 2024 Jim Caron
