Rating: 
Summary: Hilarious cinema classic
Review: One of the greatest films of all time and with its fair share of a few good laughs. The funniest scene had to be DeNiro taking Cybil Shepherd on a date...to a porno theatre! Her reactions are just classic. "You've got to be kidding, this is a dirty movie." And it's not just any dirty movie, it's a Masters & Johnson instructional documentary! We also get Jodie Foster as a teenage hooker and Harvey Keitel as her crazy pimp. Sometimes it is just so much I can barely handle it.
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Summary: A Human Time Bomb
Review: Director Martin Scorcese and Robert De Niro (as Travis Bickle) collaborated on a film unlike almost any other I have seen. What to say about it? Bickle is a delusional and dysfunctional (probably deranged) taxi driver in Manhattan who is strongly attracted to Betsy (Cybill Shepherd), a beautiful young woman centrally involved in the political campaign of Senator Charles Palantine (Leonard Harris); Bickle also attempts to befriend Iris (Jodie Foster), a runaway teenage prostitute. He proclaims "I'm God's lonely man!" In some respects resembling the psychotic character Archer Maggott played by Telly Savalas in The Dirty Dozen, Bickle also sees himself as God's avenging angel whose mission in life is to eliminate all of the evil which he perceives in his world. After recently seeing this film again, I asked myself the same question I did in 1976: How many Travis Bickles are out there? All of the performances are outstanding. Working carefully with Paul Schrader's screenplay on which he presumably collaborated, Scorcese portrays a sordid, potentially violent underworld which is most dangerous after all the "good people" are comfortably settled and secure in their homes. Laurent Bouzereau's 70-minute "making of" feature provided with the Collector's Edition is highly informative, as are the mini-biographies of Scorcese, De Niro, Keitel, Foster, and Shepherd.
Rating:
Summary: Irrefutable evidence of why De Niro is the best
Review: For all those that have ever insulted Robert De Niro's talent, watch Taxi Driver to see why so many consider Robert De Niro to be the best actor alive. Taxi Driver is one of the most unique films of all time. It is a 2 hour character study, but despite this rather boring idea, the film is pulled off expertly by filmmaking genius Martin Scorsese. During the whole movie, I asked myself, if I were in Travis' situation, who's to say I wouldn't lash out at all of these scummy people I dealt with everyday? Travis did lose his mind towards the end, but nevertheless he comes out as a hero even though he is a severely disturbed mind. De Niro's performance in this movie is simply incredible and still unmatched by any actor alive. This film should be mandatory viewing for every moviegoer alive.
Rating:
Summary: Robert De Niro, MarScorsese, and Paul Schrader at their best
Review: Silence broods like a bevy of knives through one's subconscious. Why do people literally hate being alone? I believe the answer lies in our minds. We, as human beings, are naturally afraid of being alone with our thoughts...our vivid imaginations. Paul Schrader can certainly attest to that after writing Taxi Driver, and John Hinckley Jr. is living proof of the truth the film held. Drew Barrymore could tell you first-hand how real the film was to her. While our minds are capable of the most imaginative and beautiful dreams, the same mind may also yield horrific nightmares and destruction. "This utter aloneness is at the center of Taxi Driver...perhaps it is why so many people connect with it even though Travis Bickle would seem to be the most alienating of movie heroes. We have all felt as alone as Travis. Most of us are just better at dealing with it (Ebert, Chicago Sun Times '96)." Travis Bickle is the mind of Scorsese's recurring character study, and the first among the three characters that accompany the mind, body, and soul of the isolated human in Scorsese's films. (The other 2 are Jake La Motta - the body and Rubert Pipkin - the soul) He directs the film almost entirely through the corroded subjective eyes of Travis. Therefore, we the audience are forced to see what he sees and feel how he feels, resulting in our inability to escape the escalating terror festering in his fragile, eggshell mind.
Countless examples throughout Taxi Driver display this bizarre and disturbing study of the mind. The film begins with a smoke-filled street illuminating with red fiery lights as Bickle's taxi drives by like a hearse in a graveyard. Even the schizophrenic soundtrack suggests an eerie partisanship with Bickle's clouded perspective, going back and forth between smooth jazz and a ferocious drum thrashes and orchestration. All he sees on the streets are hoodlums, prostitutes, thieves, and degenerates. As far as the audience knows, we're not in New York or some big city...we're in hell. Perhaps we're in Bickle's own personal hell in his mind. If you're interested in a film that studies humanity in its most vulnerable state, this film will live up to your expectations. If you're interested in a film that critiques the 1970s and the obsession with celebrity, then this this film will give you what you want. In addition, the Collector's Edition gives you plenty of special features, including the original script, documentaries, photo stills, and trailers. A great buy if it's less than $20.
Rating:
Summary: "You Talking To Me?"
Review: This classic movie, brilliantly directed by Martin Scorsese, stars Robert De Niro as Travis Bickle. Bickle is a retired Marine who is now an urban taxi driver. He thinks that his urban area is a pile of [pooh] and shows how humanity is going downhill. He plays gaurdian angel to a prostitue, played by Jodie Foster. He is a truely disturbed individual, and becomes extreme violent and sinister. This film gives a very vivid look into the mind of a man gone insane. Scorsese shows how the most disturbing people are the ones that you least expect. How someone that you trust will never hurt you, can be lead to put you into danger. Many people who saw this movie were horrifiied and diesgusted by the storyline. The movie has often been misunderstood as a violent and graphic, however, this film is a classic look at how far and disturbed a mind can be. The evil in the movie is to show the intense disturbance inside a man's head.
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Summary: A film like this could not get made in Hollywood today...
Review: The 1970s were a great period for American directors, and "Taxi Driver" is one of the best. Robert De Niro's portrayal of Travis Bickle has to be one of the most vivid and truthful habitations of a character ever committed to film. Loneliness and envy are very difficult emotions for an actor to convey; they are for the most part wholly interior, but De Niro is astonishing in the subtle ways he projects the hell of his loneliness in a city of ten million. This film is also amazing in its depiction of how an individual falls through the cracks to become the "lone nut". It is also a "deconstruction" of the myths of the cinematic Western, and examines the fractured sexual conscience of many male Americans (screenwriter Paul Schrader was raised a Calvinist, of which there are many overtones in the film). Travis could easily go to a prostitute, but he doesn't; he goes to porn movies instead, where sex is safely contained in images. Indeed, his entire world seems a film running by him in which he doesn't really take part. He hates the degradation in it, yet becoming "a person like other people" (as he claims he would like to be) would mean somehow taking part in its fallenness. He is desperately trying to reach out to those around him but seems doomed--illustrated by the scene between him and Wizard [Peter Boyle], where Travis asks for his advice then replies "that's about the dumbest thing I've ever heard" with a callous smirk. One feels both revulsion and pity for him. He seems a victim to some unknown traumatic event and yet actively takes part in his own sickness. Schrader's screenplay takes its time in establishing this difficult state of mind to us through action and some of the best voice-over narration in any movie. Then there are Schrader's subtle hints at the cracks in the "rugged individual" mythology, as channeled through signifiers of the West: Travis wears Western boots, practices gunslinging in the mirror, and is called "cowboy" by the hotel/brothel owner. But Travis later gives himself a Mohawk, reversing his image and rebelling against even this role/identity which he at first seemed to take pleasure in..."God's lonely man." At the denouement, the media paints Travis as a hero for killing two pimps and a Mafioso, because, it would seem, it's the only way we can understand the motivation for his violence--yet we know the real story: Travis would have killed the presidential candidate Charles Palantine, his "rival" for Betsy's (Cybill Shepard) affections, but was foiled in the attempt and thus went to plan b and took out his rage on another level of exploiters. (Another reviewer has an interesting take on this much-criticized ending: It is Travis's dying thoughts, which makes sense given the floating camera angle just prior to it as he lays bleeding). Bernard Herrmann's theme music is appropriately schizo, alternating like the facets of Travis's personality--earnest and calm, then brooding and threatening. The supporting performances are all great, especially Scorsese's turn as a cuckolded, revenge-obsessed husband Travis picks up, which puts the idea of violence explicitly in his mind.
A movie like "Taxi Driver" would never, ever get made by a big Hollywood studio today.
Rating:
Summary: A must see, thought provoking movie
Review: Taxi Driver is a thought provoking movie that everyone should see at least once. The movie makes you think about how life really is for some people. Taxi Driver is about Travis Bickle, a New York cab driver who is tired of what has become of NY and decides to do something about it. One of the best scenes in the movie that shows how misunderstood Travis was, is the scene where he goes on a date with Cybill Sheperd's character, Betsy. Travis didn't understand why the movie seemed like an odd choice for a date, because it was something he enjoyed and just expressed humans in their rawest state. But most people can see how she could've been uncomfortable with his selection. The movie is gritty and shows things you really don't want to see or think about, but you still don't turn the movie off or walk away. Martin Scorsese does a wonderful job making De Niro's character relatable, not to say that De Niro's impeccable acting had nothing to do with it. Travis is like most people, a hard working, blue collar member of society, that sees his community going through changes he doesn't like. Travis is the person inside of all of us that wants to make a difference. But instead of sitting idly by and watching things crumble, he decides to take action. But goes about things in the wrong way.
Rating: 
Summary: Where's the Entertainment Value?
Review: De Niro joins NY's taxi squad, and becomes immersed in the city's scum, the hookers, the pimps, the porn, everything that is humanity's worse. This constant experience with the seedy side of NYC, causes De Niro to fall into a state of enough is enough. The city has taken his soul and his life. Through this he becomes suicidal, and is compelled to do something about it. No doubt, this film is a very good character portrayal of a man falling, and De Niro does a first rate job. For it's genre, it's probably one of the best. BUT where's the entertainment in this film? Watching it, it was a journey of De Niro's character, but I was waiting for some plot to show up. Even with the deadly ending, it wasn't enough to justify the 2 hours of watching this movie. I'd say, good acting by De Niro, it's a sombre and depressing look at a man swallowed up in NYC's worse, but don't expect to be entertained by this movie. It is what it is.
Rating:
Summary: Pure and simple, a classic
Review: I'm not really much of a movie "critic"; In fact I dislike most critics as they think everyone else should have the same tastes in movies and plays. In my personal opinion, Taxi Driver MUST be one of the best, if not the best, movies of all time. If you are looking for an Action Jackson, kill'em all, special effects, light-speed space travel thriller then... You will be disappointed. However, if you enjoy thought-provoking stories, solid, convincing acting, and a movie that seriously makes you THINK and entertain you at the same time, Taxi Driver is the spot! Then again, thats just my personal opinion :)
Rating:
Summary: "Here is a man who would not take it anymore...."
Review: The public knows Taxi Driver for one cliché, the infamous "You talking to me..etc, etc." This somewhat funny line is just one part of an immensely powerful performance by a young Robert DeNiro, whose role as disturbed psychopath Travis Bickle makes this one of my all time favorite movies. Taxi Driver is a deep look into American society during the 1970's, especially the dreary slums of New York City. The moral confusion, the thirst for vigilantism, the outbreak of drug crime and the failure of the welfare state are all paraded by Martin Scorsese with damaging insight. Taxi Driver is not a violent vengeance epic like Death Wish, but it is one of the most vicious and powerful message films ever made. Travis Bickle hates so much because he sees so much. As a cab driver, he is forced to work the worst neighborhoods, where savagery is common and law is non-existent. In addition, Travis is definitely unbalanced, with mood swings, insomnia, and a sugar habit. This combination wakes something up in Travis, a violent hunger for justice and civility in society. He feels trapped, he wants to do something, as he says. His attempts to ignore this urge by entering into a relationship with a high-class political operative, played by the beautiful Cybill Shepherd, fails. He slowly but surely descends into madness. Finally, he finds someone he can concentrate his energies on, a young prostitute played by Jodie Foster. As he learns more about the poor girls past, he decides to embark on a plan that will solve all their problems. DeNiro should have won the Oscar that year, because his performance is something else. I cannot think of another actor that could pull off the steady descent of paranoia that Bickle goes through convincingly. The cinematography is wonderful, with an oppressive and dank feeling of grime and decay. Scorsese lets the storyline develop naturally, shying away from any unbelievable twists and turns. The end scene is, of course, amazing in its ferocity and graphic nature. This DVD edition is a wonderful way to experience the movie, as its extras and the making of documentary are quality editions. Great movie.
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