IMDb > Taxi Driver (1976)
Taxi Driver
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Taxi Driver (1976) More at IMDbPro »

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Taxi Driver (1976) -- A mentally unstable Vietnam war veteran works as nighttime taxi driver in a city whose perceived decadence and sleaze feeds his urge to violently lash out, attempting to save a teenage prostitute in the process.
Taxi Driver (1976) -- A mentally unstable Vietnam war veteran works as nighttime taxi driver in a city whose perceived decadence and sleaze feeds his urge to violently lash out, attempting to save a teenage prostitute in the process.
Taxi Driver (1976) -- CineMagia.ro - Trailer (Flash)

Overview

User Rating:
MOVIEmeter: ?
Down 8% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Writer:
Paul Schrader (written by)
Contact:
View company contact information for Taxi Driver on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
8 February 1976 (USA) more
Genre:
Tagline:
On every street in every city, there's a nobody who dreams of being a somebody. more
Plot:
A mentally unstable Vietnam war veteran works as nighttime taxi driver in a city whose perceived decadence and sleaze feeds his urge to violently lash out, attempting to save a teenage prostitute in the process. full summary | full synopsis
Awards:
Nominated for 4 Oscars. Another 18 wins & 9 nominations more
NewsDesk:
(168 articles)
First Run Grabs Docu Filled with Nightmares: Tales From the Script
 (From ioncinema. 14 December 2009, 7:03 PM, PST)

Kieron’s Top 13 Films of 2009
 (From Reel Loop. 14 December 2009, 6:54 AM, PST)

User Comments:
Diary of a madman more (615 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Robert De Niro ... Travis Bickle (as Robert DeNiro)

Jodie Foster ... Iris

Albert Brooks ... Tom

Harvey Keitel ... Sport
Leonard Harris ... Charles Palantine

Peter Boyle ... Wizard

Cybill Shepherd ... Betsy
Diahnne Abbott ... Concession Girl
Frank Adu ... Angry Black Man
Gino Ardito ... Policeman at Rally
Victor Argo ... Melio (as Vic Argo)
Garth Avery ... Iris' Friend
Harry Cohn ... Cabbie in Bellmore
Copper Cunningham ... Hooker in Cab

Brenda Dickson ... Soap Opera Woman
more
Create a character page for: ?

Additional Details

Runtime:
113 min | Spain:110 min (cut version)
Country:
Language:
Color:
Color (Metrocolor)
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Dolby SR (re-release) | Stereo
Certification:
New Zealand:R18 | Canada:R (Manitoba/Nova Scotia/Ontario) | Italy:VM14 | Germany:16 (re-rating) | West Germany:18 (original rating) | Iceland:16 | Brazil:14 | South Africa:16LV | Philippines:R-18 | Canada:18A (Canadian Home Video rating) | Spain:13 (re-rating) | Argentina:18 | Australia:R | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Chile:18 | Finland:K-16 | France:-12 (re-rating) | France:-16 (original rating) | Hong Kong:IIB | Ireland:18 | Israel:18 | Japan:R-15 | Netherlands:16 | Norway:18 | Peru:18 | Portugal:M/18 | Singapore:M18 | South Korea:18 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 (video rating) (1986) (cut) | UK:18 (video re-rating) (1993) (uncut) | UK:X (original rating) (cut) | USA:R (Approved No. 24441)

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Legendary composer Bernard Herrmann died on Christmas Eve of 1975, just hours after completing the recording sessions for this film. more
Goofs:
Continuity: When meeting with Betsy for the first time at the Palantine-supporters office, an overhead shot of Travis shows him beginning to sweep his arm through the air above the desk, but when we immediately cut back to a frontal shot of Travis we see his arms are clearly in the same position as before. more
Quotes:
[first lines]
[phone rings loudly]
Personnel Officer: Harry, answer that.
Personnel Officer: So whaddya want to hack for, Bickle?
Travis Bickle: I can't sleep nights.
Personnel Officer: There's porno theaters for that.
Travis Bickle: Yeah, I know, I tried that.
Personnel Officer: So now what do you do?
Travis Bickle: I ride around most nights - subways, buses - but you know, if I'm gonna do that I might as well get paid for it.
more
Movie Connections:
Referenced in Die Ratte (1993) more
Soundtrack:
HOLD ME CLOSE more

FAQ

A NOTE REGARDING SPOILERS
What is the relevance of the noise that Travis Bickle hears at the very end before the credits roll?
Why does the colouring look weird at the end of the film? The blood looks like tobasco sauce. Was the film damaged?
more
71 out of 85 people found the following comment useful.
Diary of a madman, 13 February 2006
10/10
Author: francois chevallier (francheval@noos.fr) from Paris, France

The script of "Taxi Driver" is built like a diary, the diary of a very ordinary guy who gets hired as a night taxi driver back from Vietnam, because he can't sleep at night. A very ordinary guy who tries to break his isolation, but can't, while violence accumulates inside him. One of those unnoticed people with dark things on their mind, one of those who break up the news one day with some extraordinary outburst of rage, to fall back immediately into anonymity.

The gradual transformation of man into beast in this movie is chilling. It's still funny and pathetic when the hero threatens himself in front of the mirror ("you're talking to me?"), but when he comes out with a mohawk hairdo and dark glasses, it is obvious that nasty stuff is going to take place. As in "A Clockwork Orange", violence is recuperated by society depending on what purpose it is used for. Whereas he was about to murder the candidate for presidency, "god's lonely man" fails and instead kills a vicious pimp who exploits teenage prostitutes. The potential criminal becomes a hero for a day.

Such stories happen everywhere of course, but it seems that the bewildering atmosphere of New York City's summer night was the best choice. "Taxi Driver" gives us a very realistic approach of New York, in a way that is not seen on screen so often, at least not anymore, whilst that city is probably the one in the world that has been filmed the biggest number of times.

Most of the movie takes place at night. The credits open on the blazing lights of the yellow taxi cab moving slowly in the dark rainy streets. A kaleidoscope of neonlight appears through the dripping windows as the driver's eyes blink in the front mirror. The night is the hero's universe, it's the time when "all the animals come out", as he says. By contrast, the few daylight scenes look somewhat off-key, but this was definitely intentional.

The final scene still appears today as extremely violent, but at least, it shows murder for what it is. Brutal, ugly, crude. It is something one tends to forget about after seeing so many police series where people get shot so often that it gets casual. Real violence is not casual when you face it, and here is a film that makes you face it.

The directing is first class and deservedly made path for Scorsese as a world renowned artist. Some techniques he used here are unusual for American cinema, like focusing on details for a few seconds. The movie is enhanced by an excellent music soundtrack by jazz composer Bernard Herrman who died before the picture was even released.

Two of the actors also deservedly made it to stardom. Robert de Niro plays a very unglamorous character, but his presence on screen is so intense that it's no wonder it made such an impression. As for Jodie Foster, she already appeared in films as a child, but playing a teenage prostitute was certainly not an easy challenge, and probably it was that role that really turned her into a major actress.

"Taxi Driver" was a big hit when it came out, both for the public and the critics. It won the Palme d'Or in Cannes, and served as a trend setter for many later films, like for instance Quentin Tarantino's and Abel Ferrara's. But even today, the original model seems difficult to emulate, probably because achieving a masterpiece is a rare thing, by definition.

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