This article was automatically translated from the original Turkish version.
Taxi Driver is a 1976 American neo-noir psychological thriller film directed by Martin Scorsese and written by Paul Schrader. The film tells the story of a veteran unable to shake off the trauma of the Vietnam War who rejects adaptation to the dirty and unjust world he observes while working as a taxi driver at night.
Taxi Driver film poster - IMDb
After returning from Vietnam to New York, veteran Travis Bickle (Robert De Niro) struggles to integrate into and adapt to urban life, his alienated worldview acting as a barrier to his assimilation. Suffering from what is now recognized as post-Vietnam syndrome, Travis is melancholic and finds it difficult to establish a sense of identity. Due to insomnia, he takes up night work as a taxi driver. While driving through the city’s streets, he observes the moral decay and deterioration of society. He becomes infatuated with Betsy (Cybill Shepherd), a secretary working on a political campaign, and asks her out. They meet several times but fail to sustain a healthy relationship; each time Travis tries to reach her, he receives a rejection. Although this turning point drives him toward firearms, Travis decides to acquire a weapon and take action, resolving to cleanse the streets of their filth. He meets Iris (Jodie Foster), a young girl who has become entangled in the city’s corruption, after she gets into his taxi. The girl is under the control of a pimp named Sport (Harvey Keitel), and Travis resolves to rescue Iris from him and the life she has been forced into as part of his mission to purify the city.
Travis Bickle, Taxi Driver - IMDB
Shot on a very low budget during the hot months of 1975 in New York, the city’s garbage strike at the time naturally contributed to the film’s portrayal of chaos and the public’s exhaustion within such an environment. Taxi Driver is a masterclass in visual storytelling through subtle cues and symbolism. Scorsese carefully selects details that allow the audience to sense the underlying emotion, crafting the intended psychological impact. The performances are as compelling and powerful as they are professional. Scorsese focuses not on the characters themselves but on the actors, capturing their moments with precision. Robert De Niro portrays Travis with all his melancholy and darkness, and although he conceals his emotions, Scorsese reflects them with masterful subtlety on screen.
29th Cannes Film Festival
The film was nominated for seven awards at the 30th British Academy Film Awards and won three.
The film received four nominations at the 49th Academy Awards.
Plot
Cast
Cinematography and Narrative
Awards and Accolades