In the early ‘70s, the Vietnam war ended and the veterans who fought returned to their country. Suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, many veterans found it hard to blend into existing society.
One of them was Travis Bickle, who was trying hard to fit into the vice-filled city of New York.
Did he fit into society? Or did he act violently to cope with his trauma?
Taxi Driver explores the mind of Travis, which was directed by the revered filmmaker who doesn’t need an introduction - Martin Scorsese.
Travis, the protagonist of the film, takes up a night shift taxi driver job after the war to cope with his post-war mental illnesses.
But the dark side of midnight New York City takes a toll on him, worsening his existing condition. He then dreams of cleansing the vices from the city.
He felt a deep connection with Betsy, the volunteer working for a senator running for the presidency. But his loneliness exposes his destructive habits, which repulse Betsy.
As he couldn’t fit into society, he couldn’t accept the subsequent rejection of Betsy, from which he spiralled into existential crisis and wrath; eventually finding a way to clean the city of impurities on his own.
On his journey to become a vigilante, he met Iris. Iris was a child being exploited for prostitution, for whom he felt deeply to save her from her captors. After a failed attempt to assassinate the senator for whom Betsy is working, he finally succumbs to his rage. He outbursts his anger on Iris’s captors, resulting in a violent gunfight.
The last scene of Taxi Driver is well debated whether it was only Travis dreaming, despite Scorsese stating it was an actual scene.
Recovered from a coma after a gunfight, Travis reaches Betsy to her destination after praising him for his actions while driving. Then his face changes into a manic expression, replaying the first phase of the film.
Robert De Niro played a phenomenal role in portraying Travis Bickle. He successfully depicted a Vietnam war veteran turned taxi driver finding ways to vent his anger through his destructive behaviour.
Robert De Niro’s acting made the audience feel Travis's loneliness, vexation, and existential dread, making him an anti-hero more than a hero. The stellar cast also included Jodie Foster, Cybill Shepherd, Harvey Keitel, among others. Director Scorsese also played a cameo role.
Taxi Driver is the breakthrough movie for Martin Scorsese as the director. His use of freeze frame and slow motion depicted the fights as realistic. He did a great job showing what was happening inside Travis’s mind, giving the audience a clear sense of his thoughts and intentions.
The film won many accolades rightfully. It won Palme d’Or, the highest prize in the 1976 Cannes Film Festival and several Academy Awards nominations. US Library of Congress inducted the film into National Film Registry in 1994, announcing its status as a timeless classic.
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