Taxi Driver
released 1976
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“Taxi Driver” is an American, action, psychologically twisted, cut classic film produced by Julia Phillips, Michael Phillips and written by Paul Schrader, directed by Martin Scorsese. It stars Robert De Niro, Jodie Foster, Cybill Shepherd, Albert Brooks, Diahnne Abbott, Frank Adu, Victor Argo, Gino Ardito, Garth Avery, Peter Boyle, Harry Cohn, Copper Cunningham, Brenda Dickson, Harry Fischler, Nat Grant, Leonard Harris, Richard Higgs and Beau Kayser. It remains a cult classic for its morbid strangeness and sinister humor.

Taxi Driver IMDb webpage

“Taxi Driver” is the story of Vietnam War veteran and taxi driver Travis Bickle, brilliantly played by Robert De Niro, who´s mind unravels from the stresses of life and under extreme loneliness. We watch him unravel and are inside his head as his actions and moods get more complex and sinister. We all do some weird things when we´re alone but Travis´actions and thoughts go well into what is bizzare and disturbing. I´m sure a psychologist could describe the levels of insanity Travis falls through but for us, the simple viewer, it´s one WTF scene after another. As a taxi driver he drives around the city and sees a lot of the serious societal problems plaguing the city. Keep in mind that this is the New York City of the mid-1970s. He sees the worst of the worst and he is a twisted person himself so maybe he is also drawn to that. He makes a gadget that allows him to conceal and draw a gun with lightning rapidity, as he expects to fall into trouble, and he eventually shaves his head as a kind of ritual to shed any inhibitions on committing violence. His strange behavior does not end when he finds love but it does seem to calm his need for future craziness.

That scene where he is at home and talking to himself in front of the mirror over and over again saying “Are you talking to me?” is hilarious and sinister. Travis is angry but he does enjoy himself and the reality he has imagined for himself.

Many films from the 70s and even 80s are heavily influenced by the Vietnam War, which was seen by many to be a disaster. The way the war really went, the reasons for the war and how the veterans were treated upon their return are all issues that haunt the American psyche for decades on. It´s safe to assume that part of Travis´ isolation is due to the effects of the war on him and how difficult it was for so many veterans to re-assimilate back into society once they got home.

Let me try to explain the appeal of this film that has withstood the test of time after all these year. You have a guy who does what he wants, rails against clear problems in society and decides to take care of those problems himself in his own way. A character who doesn´t give a hoot always attracts a kind admiration from viewers. He is seen as a rebel or vigilante and those types of characters always have a place in our hearts. What´s strange is how far the viewer is willing to go to ignore the vigilante´s misdeeds and crimes. Most people I know liked the ending of the film because it was as crazy as the entire film itself. There is also sympathy for the Vietnam War veteran on the part of the viewer and it is that sympathy that helps to make his bad deeds ignorable, I guess. But what is so brilliant about this film is how it avoids becoming a maudlin drama, a cautionary tale of someone gone insane and paying a price for it. Travis Bickle survived the Vietnam War and he will survive living in New York City, its crazy people and doing crazy things.

Check it out. It´s a good watch. It really is a fun movie to watch with friends.

John Ink2Quill

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