1976 American drama movie Taxi Driver is about Travis Bickle (played by Robert De Niro), an ex-Marine and Vietnam War veteran living in New York City. As he suffers from insomnia, he spends his time working as a cabbie at night, watching porn movies at seedy cinemas during the day, or thinking about how the world, New York in particular, has deteriorated into a cesspool. He's a loner who has strong opinions about what is right and wrong with mankind. Directed by Martin Scorsese and screenwritten Paul Schrader, the film was considered gritty, disturbing, nightmarish modern film classic, that examines alienation in urban society. Scorsese's fourth film, combining elements of film noir, the western, horror and urban melodrama film genres. Historically, the film appeared after a decade of war in Vietnam, and after the disgraceful Watergate crisis and President Nixon's resignation.
It explores the psychological madness within an obsessed, twisted, inarticulate, lonely, anti-hero cab driver and war vet (De Niro), who misdirectedly lashes out with frustrated anger and power like an exploding time
bomb at the world that has alienated him. His assaultive unhinging is first paired with a longing to connect with a blonde goddess office worker (Shepherd), and then with an attempt to rescue/liberate a young 12-year old prostitute named Iris (Foster) from her predatory pimp "Sport" (Keitel) and her tawdry, streetwalking life. Taxi Driver constantly, almost obsessively, reflects on the ugly corruption of life around him, and becomes increasingly disturbed over his own loneliness and alienation. In nearly every phase of his life, Bickle remains a complete outsider, failing to make emotional contact with anyone. Unable to sleep night after night, Travis haunts the local pornography emporiums to find diversion, and begins desperately thinking about an escape from his depressing existence.
The film is set in New York City, soon after the Vietnam War. The film stars Robert De Niro and features Albert Brooks, Harvey Keitel, Leonard Harris, Peter Boyle, Cybill Shepherd, and a young Jodie Foster. The film was nominated for four Academy Awards, including Best Picture, and won the Palme d'Or at the 1976 Cannes Film Festival. Although the film was nominated for four Academy Awards nominations (without recognition for director Scorsese, screenwriter Paul Schrader, or cinematographer Michael Chapman): Best Picture, Best Actor (Robert De Niro), Best Supporting Actress (Jodie Foster), and Best Original Score (Bernard Herrmann, nominated posthumously -- Herrmann passed away shortly after completing his work in this film) - all were unrewarded. The film gained further notoriety when John Hinckley, Jr. claimed that it was his obsession with Foster's role that made him attempt to assassinate Ronald Reagan in 1981.
Taxi Driver has been acknowledged as consciously influenced by John Ford's The Searchers (1956) - the story of another angry war veteran and social outcast who becomes obsessed during a search and rescue of his young niece from a long-haired Comanche chief named Scar. In many ways, the film has become prophetic and mirrors the violence of contemporary news headlines. Notoriously, the film is linked to and may have triggered the political assassination (copy-cat) attempt by inconspicuous John Hinckley on President Ronald Reagan in 1981, illuminating his dangerous fixation on actress Jodie Foster, and resulting in the assassin's infamous media-hero status.
Directed by Martin Scorsese
Produced by Julia Phillips and Michael Phillips
Written by Paul Schrader
Distributed by Columbia Pictures
Release date(s) February 8, 1976
Language English
Budget $1.3 million
Gross revenue $28,262,574
Casts:
- Robert De Niro as Travis Bickle
- Jodie Foster as Iris "Easy" Steensman
- Cybill Shepherd as Betsy
- Harvey Keitel as Matthew "Sport" Higgins
- Peter Boyle as "Wizard"
- Albert Brooks as Tom
- Norman Matlock as "Charlie T"
- Leonard Harris as Senator Charles Palantine
- Harry Northup as Doughboy
- Martin Scorsese as a passenger in Travis' taxi
- Victor Argo as a grocery store owner
- Nat Grant as stickup man
- Steven Prince as "Easy Andy", an illegal gun salesman
- Joe Spinell as Travis' personnel officer at the taxi depot
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