The Guardian (1984 film)
The Guardian is a 1984 American thriller film directed by David Greene and written by Richard Levinson and William Link. The film stars Martin Sheen, Louis Gossett Jr., Arthur Hill, Tandy Cronyn, Simon Reynolds and Tom Harvey. The film premiered on HBO on October 20, 1984. Plot. The inhabitants of a New York City apartment building are plagued by burglaries and murder, and they have finally had enough. So they employ ex-military man John Mack (Louis Gossett Jr.) to protect their building as a security guard. Mack's techniques are precise and intense, and soon  his overbearing and power-mad nature begins to chafe resident Charles Hyatt (Martin Sheen). Hyatt seeks Mack's removal, but will he have to forfeit his own safety in his quest for freedom? The ending illustrates how Charles Hyatt comes to terms with the necessity of having a tough, no-nonsense security guard in order to protect the residents in their part of town (albeit reluctantly).