Taxi Driver poster & wallpaper
Get movie widget Recommend it Add to Favorites

Robert De Niro, Cybill Shepherd, Peter Boyle, Albert Brooks, Harvey Keitel ... see more see more... , Jodie Foster , Murray Moston , Richard Higgs , Leonard Harris , Steven Prince , Martin Scorsese , Diahnne Abbott , Frank Adu , Gino Ardito , Victor Argo , Bob Maroff , Norman Matlock , Bill Minkin , Harry Northrup , Robert Shields , Joe Spinell , Vic Magnotta , Brenda Dickson , Carey Poe , Peter Savage , Ralph S. Singleton , Copper Cunningham , Deborah Morgan , Harry Cohn , Jason Holt

"All the animals come out at night" -- and one of them is a cabby about to snap. In Martin Scorsese's classic 1970s drama, insomniac ex-Marine Travis Bickle (Robert De Niro) works the nightshift, driv... read more read more...ing his cab throughout decaying mid-'70s New York City, wishing for a "real rain" to wash the "scum" off the neon-lit streets. Chronically alone, Travis cannot connect with anyone, not even with such other cabbies as blowhard Wizard (Peter Boyle). He becomes infatuated with vapid blonde presidential campaign worker Betsy (Cybill Shepherd), who agrees to a date and then spurns Travis when he cluelessly takes her to a porno movie. After an encounter with a malevolent fare (played by Scorsese), the increasingly paranoid Travis begins to condition (and arm) himself for his imagined destiny, a mission that mutates from assassinating Betsy's candidate, Charles Palatine (Leonard Harris), to violently "saving" teen hooker Iris (Jodie Foster) from her pimp, Sport (Harvey Keitel). Travis' bloodbath turns him into a media hero; but has it truly calmed his mind? Written by Paul Schrader, Taxi Driver is an homage to and reworking of cinematic influences, a study of individual psychosis, and an acute diagnosis of the latently violent, media-fixated Vietnam era. Scorsese and Schrader structure Travis' mission to save Iris as a film noir version of John Ford's late Western The Searchers (1956), aligning Travis with a mythology of American heroism while exposing that myth's obsessively violent underpinnings. Yet Travis' military record and assassination attempt, as well as Palatine's political platitudes, also ground Taxi Driver in its historical moment of American in the 1970s. Employing such techniques as Godardian jump cuts and ellipses, expressive camera moves and angles, and garish colors, all punctuated by Bernard Herrmann's eerie final score (finished the day he died), Scorsese presents a Manhattan skewed through Travis' point-of-view, where De Niro's now-famous "You talkin' to me" improv becomes one more sign of Travis' madness. Shot during a New York summer heat wave and garbage strike, Taxi Driver got into trouble with the MPAA for its violence. Scorsese desaturated the color in the final shoot-out and got an R, and Taxi Driver surprised its unenthusiastic studio by becoming a box-office hit. Released in the Bicentennial year, after Vietnam, Watergate, and attention-getting attempts on President Ford's life, Taxi Driver's intense portrait of a man and a society unhinged spoke resonantly to the mid-'70s audience -- too resonantly in the case of attempted Reagan assassin and Foster fan John W. Hinckley. Taxi Driver went on to win the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival, but it lost the Best Picture Oscar to the more comforting Rocky. Anchored by De Niro's disturbing embodiment of "God's lonely man," Taxi Driver remains a striking milestone of both Scorsese's career and 1970s Hollywood. ~ Lucia Bozzola, Rovi

Flixster Users

93% liked it

207,339 ratings

Critics

98% liked it

61 critics

R, 1 hr. 52 min.

Directed by: Martin Scorsese

Release Date: February 8, 1976

Invite friends to see

DVD Release Date: June 15, 1999

Get It:

Stats: 15,551 reviews

report incorrect info

Photos

Taxi Driver Taxi Driver Taxi Driver Taxi Driver Robert De Niro in Taxi Driver Taxi Driver Taxi Driver u talkin to me? Taxi Driver Taxi Driver Robert De Niro in Taxi Driver Taxi Driver Robert DeNiro are tou talkin' to me? Taxi Driver Taxi Driver Travis Bickle Taxi Driver
Upload a Photo | View All Taxi Driver Photos

Your Rating


clear rating

Flixster Reviews (15,551)

  • binky013
    February 20, 2013
    binky013
    You talkin' to me? Then who the hell else are you talkin' to? You talkin' to me? Well, I'm the only one here. . . .



    De Niro's first huge effort. Monumental, really. Assassin or savior? Life works on little twists of fate or circumstance sometimes. De Niro's final journe

    ... read morey toward healing is one of the most harrowing sequences in movie history. What an intense acting job. Jodi Foster's great future acting career is assured.
  • Tomassgringo
    December 26, 2012
    Tomassgringo
    All I kept thinking was insanity is not a new movie theme!
  • fb619846742
    November 18, 2012
    fb619846742
    A masterstroke by the great Martin Scorsese concerning a recently returned Vietnam War veteran (Robert De Niro) who picks up a job in New York City as a taxi driver, and how a young campaign worker (Cybill Shepherd) catches his eye, before the relationship sours and he begins to ... read moreslowly drift into insanity. Another classic that, after re-watching a few years later, has opened my eyes to more things that make this movie truly a work of art. Each scene, character, and action in the movie serves a purpose, with a script that offers multiple interpretations as to what it all could mean (especially its conclusion). Robert De Niro's legendary, terrifying turn is one of the best performances of all-time, and the slow-burn method of showing his characters insanity isn't aiming for shock, moreso a steady pattern of decline into madness that is frighteningly realistic as much as it is disturbing. I did not like this movie upon first seeing it, but now I think it is one of the best films of all-time that anyone who claims to love movies must see.
  • fb733768972
    September 10, 2012
    fb733768972
    Essentially, this is the story about a man who wants to wipe the violence off of the streets, and with nobody left to turn to and no friends, his inner demon ensues to take control of "his city." Robert De Niro is perfect as Travis Bickle, an ex-marine with a split personality, t... read morehe dark one, in which, is about to be let out of the cage. "Taxi Driver" is one of those rare occasions when just watching the main character do his thing on screen can solely make the film a pure masterpiece. Besides some great character development, this film does not really have much to do, unless you are looking in between the lines. This is a very intelligent film that I just could not take my eyes off of. By the end, you will not be disappointed. Tense, at times witty, and sometimes downright brutal. This film is brilliant!
  • samoriley
    July 18, 2012
    samoriley
    A very powerful film. With stunning performances by Robert De Niro and Jodie Foster, along with the superb directing of Martin Scorsese. This is an intelligent movie. This is a striking and gripping film. This is a true classic.
  • fb100000040220993
    June 1, 2012
    fb100000040220993
    I always get a claustrophobic feeling watching this movie. It's brought on by Travis Bickel's alienation. Imagine having to coexist, every moment of everyday, in a world that you believe you no longer belong in. Robert De Niro's distant performance is legendary. You can alway... read mores feel the bending, and when things snap, it produces one of the most intense moments on film. This is De Niro and Scorsese at their very best, which if you're familiar with their bodies of work, is a very high compliment. I do take issue with the ending, but that's a small complaint. This is a great movie.
  • aquateen2
    May 4, 2012
    aquateen2
    [img]http://images.rottentomatoes.com/images/user/icons/icon14.gif[/img]

    Martin Scorsese's eerily disturbing, greatly thought provoking and entirely unrestrained jewel; Taxi Driver, is one of the most powerful character study drama's in film history. "Someday a real rain will... read more come and wash this scum off the streets". That's my favourite line from the film and also among the best i've ever heard. A hard hitting inspiration that all film makers who have crafted masterpieces envy. There is quite simply no flaws to it. The iconic performances from DeNiro and Foster and the inspiring direction prove the artistic and raw brutalness of cinema.
  • fb1463751009
    March 9, 2012
    fb1463751009
    An absolute captivating movie. "Taxi Driver" is an incredibly complex, dark, psychological character study of a mentally unstable man. Robert De Niro is the character. He is absolutely mesmerizing and entertaining to watch on screen. This is filmmaking at its finest. For those th... read moreat have not seen it, I highly recommend watching an old but great movie. Don't let its age scare you away; this is Martin Scorsese's masterpiece.
  • emilkakko
    January 7, 2012
    emilkakko
    Atmospheric and almost nightmarish look at one mans descent into madness. Great score from Bernard Herrmann and one of the best turns from De Niro.
  • TheMachinist
    January 2, 2012
    TheMachinist
    "I think someone should just take this city and just... just flush it down the fuckin' toilet"

    In my room, where I have my collection of films, I have two posters of 'Taxi Driver', one regular size and one so big that I can't fit it in the room at this point. I've wanted to writ... read moree a review of my favourite film for so long but I've been somewhat scared of failing... miserably. How to give 'Taxi Driver' a proper review from a person who doesn't make this for a living? Now is the time to give it a shot...

    'Taxi Driver' had lots of difficulties to get into production. The studio executives weren't that excited about Paul Schrader's strange story about a cab driver called Travis Bickle. They were in fact more interested of his other script called 'Watch the Skies'. In the end, Spielberg would direct the film but before that he rewrote it and retitled it to 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind'. Schrader's two picture deal with Columbia made it possible to give birth to these two films. The budget for 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind' was rather big but the money that came over was enough to make 'Taxi Driver' possible.

    Scorsese was not the first in mind to direct 'Taxi Driver'. Brian De Palma (Scarface', 'The Untouchables') was the first person that came in mind for directing duties for the producers. But Scorsese would get the job in the end. He had prior to 'Taxi Driver' made 'Mean Streets' and 'Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore' so he had proven to make good movies.

    The film was given "a green light". All was set, the crew was hired and the actors were ready to make history... Next, some thoughts and facts of the key players in the making of 'Taxi Driver'.

    De Niro is my all-time favourite actor. He is what you could call a method actor, focusing 100 % and preparing every detail of his character. For the role of Travis Bickle he got himself a cab licence and drove for a month on the streets of NY to understand the job. He met Army veterans to study their behavior.

    As a kid, De Niro was somewhat of a loner, he'd rather read books than hang out with other kids. He has always had a need for privacy. Even on his later days he has tried to keep a distance to the media. During filming he stayed in character throughout the filming and kept his distance also to the other actors. He rarely socialized with them, only when necessary.

    De Niro's challenge was to make Travis Bickle into a complex and troubling character, a character that would be remembered long after the release of the film. In my opinion, he did an amazing job. Bickle is a psychotic racist, driven by his past. A person who sees the impurity of men at night. He is nothing but a bystander who will stand up in the end. De Niro managed to make him a sympathetic character, laking any social skills, with an unstable personality and repressed feelings.

    "You talkin' to me? You talkin' to me? You talkin' to me? Then who the hell else are you talkin' to? You talkin' to me? Well I'm the only one here. Who do you think you're talking to? Oh yeah? Huh? Ok."

    It's a good thing that Scorsese did not join priesthood. He's somewhat religious even today but he managed to flunk his studies and attended a film school. I'm not religious at all.. but "thank God"! What I've heard, Scorsese had some difficulties with intoxicants throughout the 60's and 80's. I've even read that during filming he would snort some lines... When you look at his performance as the jealous husband in one scene it really doesn't come as a surprise. Scorsese did not intend to make a performance in the movie but what I've read, the person who was cast for the role didn't show up. So Scorsese made his own memorable contribution...

    "Have you ever seen what a .44 Magnum will do to a woman's pussy? Now that you should see. What a .44 Magnum will do to a woman's pussy that you should see."

    Schrader managed to give Bickle's character similarities to a real life person called Arthur Bremer. Bremer tried to kill US president Nixon and governor Wallace. The later one he managed to paralyze. Bremer kept a diary with him which was released in 1973 as 'An Assassin's Diary'. Schrader has told that he hadn't read the diary when he wrote 'Taxi Driver'.

    I've read that Schrader has said that during writing he suffered of depression and even had some suicidal thoughts. A loner who would just drift around on the streets and explore the distress of other loners. Not sure if all of what I've read is true but at least he has written an excellent script on which the actors and Scorsese could base their work on.

    Of course, Bickle has to have something that drives him besides his hate towards the scum and other low-lifes of NYC. 'Taxi Driver' has two female characters that become important to Bickle. In my opinion the more important one is Jodie Foster's character Iris. Iris is a child prostitute who left home and started walkin' the streets. The character has a certain innocence in her, something that would also affect Bickle. During filming, Foster was only 12-13 years old. Scorsese did not put her in the explicit or intimate scenes, for instance the scene in which Iris puts her hands on Bickle's zipper.

    By the way, Foster's performance was modeled on a real-life teen prostitute. This woman was hired as a consultant to Foster and even had a small part as Iris's friend.

    This superb portrayal of a teen prostitute gave Jodie Foster, a former Disney child actor, her first Oscar nomination. Little did she know that her performance would have an impact on her life later on by a person called John Hinckley...

    "I don't like what I'm doing, Sport."

    Cybill Shepherd has the other important female role as Betsy. A real dream girl with golden hair and white dresses, always cheerful, she is the opposite of Bickle with her optimism. Bickle's ultimate fantasy woman. It was close that Shepherd would not be given the role. In fact, I've even read that she wasn't that eager to take the role after reading the script. I've also read that De Niro and Shepherd did not come that good together on the set. Maybe because of De Niro staying in character or something else?

    But even though De Niro and the producers were not that convinced of Shepherd's acting skills, Scorsese wanted and needed a "pure" blonde for the part. He wanted her and got her. And Shepherd needed work. As a curiosity, Shepherd is the only lead performer who's career didn't reach the same level as the others. But I liked her performance in the movie. She is the perfect and at the same time wrong person for Bickle's affection.

    "They... cannot... touch... her"

    And the last character that I'm going to mention largely is Harvey Keitel's character called Sport. Keitel was considered for the role of Bickle. After losing it to De Niro, he was offered a part as the campaign manager. Keitel didn't want the role, maybe because it was so insignificant, but asked to play the pimp instead. Keitel's performance is almost just as good as De Niro's. De Niro's performance is ultimatelly the best performance I've ever seen on screen but Keitel managed to make a smaller character as Sport a memorable one.

    Keitel is an actor of the same level as De Niro. Both of 'em concentrate fully on their characters. He spent almost a month with a real pimp. I've read that Keitel even improvised scenes with the pimp to fully understand what makes them do such work. Keitel had some difficulties to adjust to the scenes he did with Foster but like a real pro, he managed to put "the filth of it all" behind him. And this next quote, even though it is really obnoxious, says everything necessary of Sport...

    "Well, take it or leave it. If you want to save yourself some money, don't fuck her. Cause you'll be back here every night for some more. Man, she's twelve and a half years old. You never had no pussy like that. You can do anything you want with her. You can cum on her, fuck her in the mouth, fuck her in the ass, cum on her face, man. She get your cock so hard she'll make it explode. But no rough stuff, all right?"

    Even the smaller roles are in my opinion just as important as the leads. Peter Boyle's character Wizard, a philosophical cab driver, someone Bickle could even call a friend. Albert Brooks plays Betsy's co-worker Tom, in his first film role. A real yuppie who has his eyes on Betsy. Victor Argo, the clerk at the store, who has probably one of the most violent scenes in the film. Steven Prince as the gun salesman. All of these contribute perfectly on the making of Taxi Driver into the best film in the history of cinema.

    So, you've probably understood already that the acting is superb in 'Taxi Driver'. But what about the editing, cinematography or music?

    Bernard Herrmann's jazzy score is minimalistic in its ways but it is in fact one of the most mesmerizing scores I've heard. I don't own that many soundtracks but 'Taxi Driver's' soundtrack is one to own if you appreciate the work of film musicians.

    Michael Chapman's cinematography, along with Tom Rolf's and Melvin Shapiro's editing, play an important part in the movie. The opening scene in which a yellow cab drives thru thick smoke and Herrmann's dreamlike score plays on the background... Filmmaking in its most perfect way.

    One specific sequence to mention is the bloodbath in the end. The camerawork, the lighting, special effects, the music. I've never seen an intensity of same caliber in any other film. The moment when Bickle puts his hand near his head to demonstrate (or mimic) a gun effect and having an eerie grin on his face... Awesome.

    De Niro's charismatic performance as Bickle, a partly sympathetic character who becomes some kind of hero at the end, Scorsese's perfect directing along with other crew members collaboration to the making of the film makes 'Taxi Driver' the best film ever. I remember when I saw 'Taxi Driver' for the first time, I was a 15 year old kid who by chance got a copy of the film. I've never been so stunned of any other film than 'Taxi Driver'. The film got under my skin, provoked me in ways I had never even thought that could be possible. Films like these just improve with every viewing.

    'Taxi Driver' is very multileveled (don't know if this is a correct word...) This is just a scratch of what can be said of this film. I'll even say that 'Taxi Driver' is very critical against our society. What could happen when society doesn't do anything to make things better for common people? Surely there are people who are ready to take justice in their own hands, just as Travis Bickle. This film is very thought provoking, a film that really deserves its place among the best films ever made.

    Perfect in every way, this is a film that comes highly recommended to any person who appreciate high-class filmmaking with in-depth characters and top-notch writing.

    "Listen, you fuckers, you screwheads. Here is a man who would not take it anymore. A man who stood up." agains the scum, the cunts, the dogs, the filth, the shit. Here is someone who stood up."

View All Taxi Driver Reviews

Critic Reviews

A.D. Murphy
February 23, 2012
A.D. Murphy, Variety

It's a powerful film and a terrific showcase for the versatility of star Robert De Niro. Full Review

Dave Calhoun
May 10, 2011
Dave Calhoun, Time Out

Bickle is complex, intriguing and never one-note. Full Review

J. Hoberman
March 15, 2011
J. Hoberman, Village Voice

Like Werner Herzog's Aguirre or Coppola's Apocalypse Now, Taxi Driver is auteurist psychodrama. Full Review

Richard Schickel
August 30, 2009
Richard Schickel, TIME Magazine

[Scorsese] seems to need scripts with well-designed humor and performers with the spirit of Ellen Burstyn to compensate for what seems to be a fundamentally depressed view of life and the belief that ... Full Review

Ben Walters
February 9, 2006
Ben Walters, Time Out

New York may have changed, but Taxi Driver is as powerful and painful as ever. Full Review

Michael Atkinson
January 4, 2005
Michael Atkinson, Village Voice

Martin Scorsese's history-making scald is truly a phenomenon from another day and age. Which is to say, imagine a like-minded film of this decade killing at the box office and getting nommed for Best ... Full Review

Vincent Canby
May 20, 2003
Vincent Canby, New York Times

You may want to argue with Taxi Driver at the end, and with good reason, but it won't be a waste of time. Full Review

Desson Thomson
January 1, 2000
Desson Thomson, Washington Post

Since the mid-1970s, the movie has become presciently emblematic of our emotionally diseased, violence-prone culture. Full Review

Mick LaSalle
January 1, 2000
Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle

The heart and soul of Taxi Driver are twisted in a way that can't be faked or copied. Full Review

Roger Ebert
January 1, 2000
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

One of the best and most powerful of all films. Full Review

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Cast

More Like This

Click a thumb to vote on that suggestion, or add your own suggestions.

  • Raging Bull
    Raging Bull (83%)
  • Mean Streets
    Mean Streets (91%)
  • Gran Torino
    Gran Torino (85%)
  • Jacknife
    Jacknife (45%)

More Movies like Taxi Driver

Facts

Submit a Fact | View All
    • Travis Bickle: Don't be a whore, you're only 12 years old, Go home!
    • Travis Bickle: I don't know. That's about the dumbest thing I ever heard.
    • Travis Bickle: You talkin' to me?
    • Travis Bickle: You're only as healthy as you feel.
    • Travis Bickle: You talkin' to me? You talkin' to me? You talkin' to me? Then who the hell else are you talkin' to? You talkin' to me? Well I'm the only one here. Who the fuck do you think you're talking to?
    • Travis Bickle: I got some bad ideas in my head.
Submit a Fact | View All

Taxi Driver : Watch Free on TV

Taxi Driver Trivia

  • In what movie was Queen Latifa a taxi driver?  Answer »
  • he directed "taxi driver", "the aviator" and "goodfellas".  Answer »
  • What do all these movies have in common: Taxi Driver, Goodfellas, Raging Bull and The King Of Comedy  Answer »
  • Which actress has starred in all of the following films? Taxi Driver Contact Inside Man The Accused  Answer »
More Taxi Driver Trivia

Movie Quizzes

Create a Quiz |

All Quizzes

Video Clips

Upload a Video |

All Taxi Driver Videos

Meet Other Fans

Add Taxi Driver to favorites

Recent News

Submit a Story |

View Taxi Driver News

Recent Lists

Make a List |

View All Lists

Most Popular Skin

UncannyX Skin by UncannyX
480 Profiles
Add to Profile

More Skins