Mark Hazzard: Merc #1 (1986)

In Grammercy Park in Manhattan, a young boy attempted to steal an apple when he was stopped by Mark Hazzard, who was carrying groceries. The boy ran away and the man who was selling the apples thanked Mark. Two women named Jen and Glory were having a conversation when they saw Mark walk away. Mark went to his home, where he had seven handguns mounted on his wall and hundreds of volumes regarding war, military history, and tactical strategy. He put down his groceries, grabbed a drink, and pushed a button on his answering machine, where he listened to missed calls from his family. Finally, Mark got a call that he was waiting for, telling him that "the gig is on." Days later, in the South Pacific, Mark and his associate Mal were outside of the house of the country's president, who was their target. Minutes later, in the president's office, the president and his wife, Carmen, were discussing concerns regarding the rebels. Suddenly, Mark entered and demanded that the president came out with him, as the former was being paid by the rebels to bring him with them. In response, Carmen pulled out a Beretta and pointed it at Mark. Mark shot Carmen, killing her, making a sound loud enough for their daughter, Maria, to hear it. Once again, he urged the president to surrender; however, the president refused, picked up a dagger, and threw it, only to be caught by the mercenary, who threw it back at him, into his chest, killing him. The president's daughter came in to find that her father had been killed. Suddenly, soldiers came in and learned that their president had been killed. The soldiers argued over who would become the new president, leading to a firefight among them. After the skirmish, only five soldiers remained and declared themselves the new government, only to be blown up by Mal's explosive charges. Later on, the rebels lead by Santos entered the president's residence and took it over. Santos, however, said that he would not be holding free elections as he believed that the citizens were "too stupid" to know what to do with their new freedom and that affairs needed to be stabilized and that supporters of the old government needed to be weeded out. Although, Santos promised to step down in a year or two. Next, Mark intended to leave with Mal when they overheard two rebels mentioned that they held Maria captive in a room and that they would take turns with her. Mark demanded that he and Mal would get to have Maria first, much to the dismay of the rebels. Mark and Mal entered the room, terrifying Maria at first, but later becoming silent, much to the suspicion of the rebels. Two rebels entered the room and realized that the window was open and that Maria had escaped. Mark and Mal ran away with Maria, much to her dismay. Maria offered to pay them money to release her, but Mark insisted that if they released her, she would be killed. Some rebels, who came to look for Maria and the two mercenaries, they fell into a trap set by Mark, which consisted of shotgun shells buried on top of a nail, blowing them away. Mark explained to Maria that the rebels wanted her parents dead and now that they wanted her dead. Maria, however, dismissed this as a "typical American lie." Mark responded that he felt sorry for Maria, implying that her parents must have "kept her under lock and key." Maria responded that his parents must have kept him under a rock. In a flashback, Mark's parents were scolding him for dropping out of United States Military Academy. Mark responded that he planned to enlist for a tour in Vietnam. His parents called him a disappointment and walked away. Back in the South Pacific, Mark said that his parents at least "lifted the rock sometimes to tell him the truth." At a nearby airstrip, Treetop, Mark and Mal's pilot, was performing maintenance on their helicopter while some rebels arrived in a jeep and opened fire on him. In response, Treetop, returned fire, killing a rebel holding a rocket launcher first. Meanwhile, Mal, who was hiding, held a 12 gauge flare pistol and fired it at the rebel jeep, causing it to explode. Maria heard the explosions and continued to plea with Mark to free her and that she did not want to be where people died all around them and declared that she was not a "war-mongering American." In another flashback, Mark was fighting in Vietnam with the military taking part in the worst jobs, taking point in a recon mission, battling hand-to-hand with men who he didn't even know wanted to kill him, and crawling through rat tunnels that also had a Viet Cong presence. Back in the South Pacific, Maria asked why Mark was taking her with him. Mark responded that he didn't like what the current government had planned for her and that he considered her his responsibility since he made it possible. In a flashback, Mark's mother, Margaret, was urging him not to return to Vietnam after three tours. She told him that before his father Leonard died, he told her to tell their son to follow in his footsteps and be a good soldier. Mark responded that from that moment on, he would pick his own fights and take orders from himself. Margaret said that he had one more order for Mark: leave her house. Back in the South Pacific, Mark and Maria were hiding in the vegetation as the former planned their escape. Suddenly, an explosion occurred, killing several rebels, causing Mark to make a run for the helicopter, dragging Maria along with him. Mal, who was already inside of the helicopter, provided covering fire for them. However, Maria refused to go with Mark, delaying him. Mark had no other choice and allowed Maria to leave. As Mark got into the helicopter, he ordered Treetop to follow Maria with the helicopter. Maria ran away from the helicopter, only to be gunned down by the rebels. The mercenaries' helicopter then fired at Santos and the rebels, killing them. Later, Mal asked Mark why he would risk everything to save Maria. Mark responded that he was hoping for "something worthwhile" to come as he replaced one dictator with another, claiming that he had disappointed his child. Mal responded that Mark's child did not know the life he lead and neither did Maria. Next, Mark said that their mission in Libya would have to wait because he had other plans for the weekend. Mal protested this, saying that they would be paid with a large sum of money and that if they turned down the job, their employers would find somebody else. Next, the two got into an argument over Mark's attitude, which Mal believed was costing them money, resulting in the two parting ways. Later, when Mark returned to the helicopter, Treetop told him that he was making a mistake and that he cost them money by turning on the rebels and for turning down the Libya mission. The next day, Mark phoned his son, Scott, who was his mother, Joan, and told him that he would see him on the following Sunday.