[trailer]
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| "you talkin to me?" |
Taxi Driver (1976), was perhaps one of the less abstract works I've seen to date. However, that by no means negates the brilliance that is this psychological action/drama, a piece that really explores the concept of the anti-hero and breaks away from the dominating traditional Hollywood genre to create a work that intimately studies themes of isolation, morality and inner turmoil. Scorsese, a pioneer New Hollywood Cinema director, has created a piece that manages to present the darker underbelly of urban New York through the eyes of a deeply disturbed vigilante, an approach that I found, albeit unconventional, immediately captivating.
The film is centred around the life of a discharged Vietnam vet Travis Bickle (played by Robert De Niro), a depressed insomniac who turns to taxi driving to pass the endless un-slept hours. As stated by Bickle himself, "you're only as healthy as you feel", and this is certainly proven true as we witness his physical and mental deterioration in a world where he is clearly the invisible man. The turning point comes with the introduction of the dazzling Betsy, a smart, independent business woman spotted by Bickle as she enters the campaign head quarters of a local politician. Her character appears to be the polar opposite to the down-trodden cabby and thus sparks within him an obsessive streak. He pursues her with vigour, even attempting to clean up his outward appearance, however ultimately becomes disenchanted when he realises "how much she's just like the others, cold and distant". once again isolating himself from social interaction. It's at this point that the extent of his mental instability is revealed in the form of a mohawk sporting, khaki-wearing military enthusiast with an endless assortment of guns hidden via a series of hidden loaders. He sets off on a mission to rid the world of scum, most specifically the pimp "Sport" responsible for teenage prostitutes such as Iris (played by a young Jodie Foster). The film ends rather uncertainly, with a shoot out in a dilapidated house occupied by the hustler in which Bickle guns down the culprit and his associates in one last ditch effort of twisted heroism. Whether or not this happened, I believe, remains debatable as the entire scenario is narrated by Bickle himself and blatantly names him a hero despite the murder of several people.
The character development is what I found most satisfying about this film. Scorsese clearly kept a very realist perspective when approaching this process and created characters who were deeply flawed, though oftentimes not in an immediately obvious way. A good example of this is Betsy who, despite having a successful career and together outward appearance, turned out to be very lonely and emotionally distant. And then there is Iris, who's shattered innocence is strongly juxtaposed with her desire to remain fragments of her youth as evidenced in the scene where Travis takes her out to lunch and she wears brightly coloured novelty glasses and recklessly slaps exorbitant amounts of jam on her toast sandwich. Her refusal to accept the horror of her situation is so beautifully addressed in this simple scene, an excellent example of the way in which New Hollywood reveals the disturbing realities of the urban underworld.
All in all a very clever film with an interesting take on the progression of a mental breakdown. Shot and written with precision and a clear purpose, to expose a darker side of the human psyche and it's obsession with belonging and the god-complex. Definitely a film that left me pondering.
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