Taxi Driver [R]

Vietnam vet Travis Bickle works as a loner night-shift taxi driver, driving up and down the streets of New York at dark hours of the morning. Suffering from insomnia and being alienated from society, Travis watches the world with disgust as society rapidly decays. A series of frustrations and a few encounters with an underage prostitute compel Travis to clean up the city, but this is going to prove an even dirtier job. 

This movie really shakes the moral compass. It deals with that whole ends-justifying-the-means thing, but in a really warped and contrary way. Filled with tries, fails, bloodshed, and late night happenings, Taxi Driver leaves you gaping and desperately searching for answers. It’s great! 

Vietnam vet Travis Bickle works as a loner night-shift taxi driver, driving up and down the streets of New York at dark hours of the morning. Suffering from insomnia and being alienated from society, Travis kills time by keeping a diary, popping pills, and hanging out in porn theatres. As he drives around at night, he watches the world with disgust as society rapidly falls into decay and a series of frustrations and a few encounters with an underage prostitute compel Travis to clean up the city. However, this is going to prove to be an even dirtier job. 

The main attraction of the film comes in the shape of its leading man, Travis Bickle. He is somewhat of a walking contradiction as he despises the immoral and unattractive things he witnesses in late hours of the night, but at the same time, he is attracted to them and uses them in an attempt to “clean” up the city and redeem society. This is what really shakes the moral compass into a chaotic whirl because, when you really think about it, which is worse: the sleazy, sometimes abusive pimp, or the man who punishes him by filling him with lead? It’s all rather macabre and really opens your eyes and sets your mind whirring. It’s fantastic! 

Everything about this movie is subtle. The story moves along one step at a time and we see that in the various ways in which Travis tries to connect with society. We first see him try to assimilate when he woos the beautiful Betsy and when that fails, we see him try to destroy society rather than rejoin it with the attempted assassination of a political figure. When that too falls through, we then see him trying to redeem society by going on a suicide-rescue-mission to save the life of the underage prostitute. The only real “action” happens, rightly so, towards the end and we are given time to think about all that has happened to culminate with this climax. 

The occasional voice-over from De Niro and the film’s jazzy one-song saxophone soundtrack holds audience attention and keeps us up to date with what Travis is thinking. These are simple techniques, but ultimately very effective. 

Robert De Niro stars as Travis Bickle and he was amazing. He radiated all manner of vibes including moral, protective, sinister, and sometimes aggressive. He was a very complex character to play and De Niro played him perfectly, bringing us that iconic line “are you talking to me? Are you talking to me? Well I’m the only one here.” Classic! 

Starring Jodi Foster, Harvey Keitel, Peter Boyle, Cybill Shepherd, and Albert Brooks, Taxi Driver was an amazing film that was filled with romance, pornography, hard work, guns, and bloodshed. Shaking the moral compass so that it will never stop whirling, this film has earned its place in The Book and has definitely left its mark on me. I’ll remember this film forever.