Taxi (I) (1998)

To work off his tarnished driving record, a hip taxi driver must chauffeur a loser police inspector on the trail of German bank robbers.

Director:

Gérard Pirès

Writer:

Luc Besson

Stars:

Samy Naceri, Frédéric Diefenthal, Marion Cotillard

3 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Samy Naceri	...	Daniel Morales
Frédéric Diefenthal	...	Émilien Coutant-Kerbalec
Marion Cotillard	...	Lilly Bertineau
Manuela Gourary	...	Camille Coutant-Kerbalec
Emma Wiklund	...	Petra (as Emma Sjöberg)
Bernard Farcy	...	Commissaire Gibert
Georges Neri	...	Joe
Guy Quang	...	Pizza Joe Motorcyclist
Maurice Murcia	...	Pensioned Taxi Driver
Sabine Bail	...	Femme Préfecture
Dan Herzberg	...	Paulo
Sébastien Thiery	...	Driving Instructor
Eric Bérenger	...	Butcher (as Eric Berenger)
Philippe du Janerand	...	Passenger to Airport
Christophe Fesquet	...	Flic Radar #1

Storyline

In Marseilles (France), skilled pizza delivery boy Daniel who drives a scooter finally has his dreams come true. He gets a taxi license. Caught by the police for a huge speed infraction, he will help Emilien, a loser inspector who can't drive, on the track of German bank robbers, so he doesn't lose his license and his dream job.

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Plot Keywords:

taxi | police | marseille | taxi driver | pizza delivery boy | 

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Genres:

Action | Comedy | Crime

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

France

Language:

French German Korean Portuguese

Release Date:

20 November 1998 (USA)

Also Known As:

Taksi

Filming Locations:

Marseille, Bouches-du-Rhône, France

Box Office

Budget:

FRF 53,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$76,688 (USA) (13 November 1998)

Gross:

£45,337 (UK) (26 November 1999)

Company Credits

Production Co:

ARP Sélection, TF1 Films Production, Canal+

Technical Specs

Runtime:

86 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

When Émilien (Frédéric Diefenthal) is taking his driving lessons, he driving school is called G. Pires, just as the director of the film (Gérard Pirès).

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Goofs

In one of the getaways, a gray Honda Accord enters the avenue before the red Mercedes passes by. In the next shot, the same Accord can be seen making a turn from another street, after the Mercedes.

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Quotes

Émilien Coutant-Kerbalec: [after shooting against bandits that flee the warehouse] I'M OUT OF AMMO!
Daniel Morales: Who cares? Look at the room! There's no one here.
Émilien Coutant-Kerbalec: Oh my, they're gone!
Daniel Morales: 'Oh my, they're gone!' Let me ask you a question: Do your interrogations always end up like this, or are you just trying to impress me?
Émilien Coutant-Kerbalec: But no! I usually get to ask at least one question.

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Connections

Followed by Taxi 3 (2003)

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Soundtracks

Thème de Lilly
by Akhenaton, La Cosca
Piano: Pierre Acourt
Saxophone: Alain Guillard

User Reviews

Proves that the French just do it better.

This movie is fantastic. It is simply an all action car chase romp set in the French city of Marseilles. The acting is highly convincing, the direction is fresh and modern and the film is easily the best car movie in years. Followed by two sequels, the film makers have kept the film very French without resorting to American-style CGI effects or bland super star actors. As a French speaker, I watched the film in its original language with subtitles in english incase I got lost. I would recommend watching the film in French to everyone, it's much better than the dubbed version. One of France's biggest films of the modern years, let's hope they keep the sequels rolling on!