Rating: 
Summary: SYMBOLISM REGINS SUPREME
Review: Every film class should have TAXI DRIVER on it's agenda: This is an exercise in cinematic symbolism. The steam rising from the manhole covers suggesting NYC houses the gates of Hell; The .44 Magnum; The long apartment hallway shot with Travis on the telephone to Betsy (being rejected); The rally at Columbus Circle...it goes endlessly. This tale of urban angst and desperation is an all time classic. The Bernard Hermann score (his last) stands on its own pillar of greatness. One of Scorsese and DeNiro's best works and without question the best film from 1976.
Rating:
Summary: A Controversial film that deserves controversy
Review: A good deal of the controversy about "Taxi Driver" revolves around its ending, and justifiably so. There are basically two criticisms that are particularly valid: The first revolves around the violence in the picture. Even by today's much too jaded standards, Travis Bickel's rampage is quite shocking. The question is: Was that extreme violence absolutely necessary to show the viewer? In other words, there is a sense that the viewer is being merely titillated by violence. Is it just violence for violence sake with no redeeming characteristic? Or isn't that Martin Scorsese's point? Isn't the violence pointless and irrational because Travis Bickle's life is pointless and he is himself an irrational person?The second point of criticism is of course why the film ends as it does. Should it have ended with the exterior scene of police cars with their flashing lights and the assembled crowd of onlookers? Or is the extending ending just right? Did the post-rampage scenes really happen (in the story)? Or are they a halucination that Bickle is experiencing as he is dying from his gunshot wounds? Does it really matter anyway? My own position is that, within the context of the story, it really doesn't matter whether Bickle is dreaming those "events" or not because Paul Schrader (the screenwriter) wrote the story that way to, among other things, highlight the nature of fame and celebrity. Aside from the fact that as viewers we know that Bickle is really no hero and therefore doesn't deserve to be treated as one, we recognize the absurdity of the press and its hunger for "red meat" stories and images. As the famous definition of celebrity goes: a celebrity is someone who is famous for being famous. If the film had ended suddenly with the exterior post-rampage street scene, Schrader would not have been able to make this additional point. Scorsese's directorial talents are therefore beyond criticism. In any event, Scorsese and Schrader worked closely on this film and I don't see the point in second guessing them. They are both men of considerable talent and their judgement has to respected. They knew what they were doing. Besides, if someone wants to know what the film would be like without the post-rampage scenes all they have to do is stop the VHS/DVD player. By the way, the film that was used for Bickle's rampage scene was not chosen as "grainy." The correct term is that the colors were desaturated. It was done to avoid the possibility of garnering an "X" rating which would have severely limited the film's audience at the time. (Even today an "NC-17" rating is the kiss of death for a movie). Sadly, when a search for the original film stock with fully saturated colors was made many years later, it was found to have deteriorated beyond the point of recovery. What a shame! It would have made for an interesting restored version. In any event, there is no need for me to recommend this film. It recommends itself.
Rating:
Summary: One of the greatest films of all time, easily
Review: There is but one aspect of this film that I felt was weak, but I'll get to that later.
Robert De Niro is captivating in this film, and performs an extremely difficult task (being the only central character in a film and appearing in essentially every frame) with a gift that few performers can lay claim to. How he didn't win an Oscar for this is anyone's guess, perhaps it was the proximity to his earlier win for "Godfather II." This is a good thing, because it is difficult if not impossible to imagine anyone but De Niro in the lead and even more difficult to imagine the film working with anyone else. The climax is still one of the most shocking and effective ever committed to film, and the grainy color of the film (used not for artistic reasons but to get the scene past the censors) adds to the surrealism of the rampage.
Now then, my beef with this film is that it doesn't end with that fantastic pan away from Bickle after he killed the men and ending with a slow zoom from the police cars and spectators arriving outside. That, in my opinion and taking nothing away from Mr. Scorsese's directorial talents, would have been the perfect end for an otherwise perfect film. The few minutes after this, which show Travis' commendation and a renewed interest from Betsy, do not really click with the rest of the piece. Granted, I do see the irony intended, that he went ballistic and instead of being committed or hanged he was congratulated and is back driving his cab, but I still do not think this end meshed well with the preceeding 100 minutes.
However, the greatest part of this film is De Niro, and that is why I stick with the five star rating. It is a must for any movie fan, although certainly not for the fainthearted.
Rating: 
Summary: Taxi Driver (1976)
Review: Director: Martin Scorsese
Cast: Robert DeNiro, Harvey Keitel, Cybill Shepherd, Jodie Foster, Peter Boyle.
Running Time: 120 minutes.
Rated R for a scene of extreme violence and language. All of us have known, in some shape or form, how Travis Bickle (played brilliantly by Robert DeNiro) feels. There is a time in every person's life in which he/she feels isolated from the world, perhaps out of place or unjustly a receiver of misfortune. Travis, on the other hand, is consumed by this sense of loneliness and despair, taking it to the brink of pure destruction and maniacal proportions. DeNiro is hauntingly right on as the former Vietnam veteran who decides to get a job as a taxi driver for the streets of New York City. As he cruises the big-city landscape, he realizes all of the hidious crime, starvation, murder, death, and macabre that consumes society. When he is rejected by a love interest (Shepherd) due to his out-of-the-norm behavior, Travis begins a downward spiral: he begins to train as if he were still in the military, buys numerous firearms and weapons, and ultimately plans to stage an assasination attempt on one of the political candidates planning to take over the city. When Travis meets a twelve-year old prostitute (Jodie Foster, in a extremely profound and witty introductory performance), his motivations for violence and release are geared towards the awful individuals who have taken this poor girl into their possession and are encouraging her into a filthy profession. This hatred for filth causes Travis to explode, creating a tormenting, horrific climax that will be remembered as one of the most severe in film history. "Taxi Driver" is certainly an acquired taste and not a film for all adults. It is a strikingly honest tale of how the inner troubles of a man can be extremely exaggerated, to the point that he knows no boundaries. Director Scorsese uses dark camera angles and vivid images to portray his story, incorporating a musical score that embodies the essence of the film: an unoffensive saxaphone that dwindles into a deep, resounding boom. A film that can shock and chill, one that should be celebrated for its original genius, but also a work that is almost too graphic and emotionally-draining to enjoy.
Rating:
Summary: A gritty superhero story?
Review: As I watched Taxi Driver for the first time in twenty-odd years, I was reminded of M. Night Shyamalan's Unbreakable. Not because Unbreakable comes anywhere close to Taxi Driver in terms of cinematic merit, but because Taxi Driver seemed to be aiming at the same broad theme--a comic book-style hero in a gritty, adult world. Because, if anything, Travis Bickle seems to fit quite closely a real world Batman, enraged by the injustices of the world, unable to fit in, and ultimately taking the law into his own hands. He has a raw honesty--in sizing up people, in not being offended by a porn movie--and an uncontrollable urge to act on a primal sense of right and wrong. Clearly, Travis is also more complex--and more disturbed--than the average comic book hero. After all, Scorcese is aiming for real life (as to which Unbreakable is a pale, upper-middle-class imitation), and Travis' own, flat reaction to his apparent "psychosis" (his lamentations about having "these thoughts" was particularly impressive) betray a condition that at least fits our preconceived notions of what it means to be mentally "ill." But, unlike so many "sane" people, Travis does the unthinkable--he speaks to people honestly and openly, he gets enraged by injustice and immorality (no one else in the movie seems to care very much about 12 year old prostitutes), he has a nobility about himself (not giving in to sexual temptation from Jodie Foster's character). And his apparent planning to attack a presidential candidate (the movie is never really clear as to whether he intends to harm the man, or even scare him) seems driven by the falsity of the candidate's message--his "we are the people" mantra echoing in a world where the common people (at least those encountered by Travis) are the last ones you'd want running things. The ending is fascinating. Is it real or a fantasy? The clippings of newspaper articles, as the camera scans across the board, say Travis is dead, and then later that he is comatose, but recovering. I suspect that the ending is a dream, the hallucination of a dying man who has his nobility vindicated in the end by appreciative parents and a city that needs more men like him.
Rating:
Summary: A Classic in its own right, but shoddy extras.
Review: If there is one film that defines "timeless classic" my pic would be Scorsese's Taxi Driver. DeNiro not only gavethe best performace of the year (1976), arguably the best performance in all of cinema. This film introduced Martin Scorsese (Goodfellas, Casino) and one of the best actors the world will ever see, Robert DeNiro. The only reason this DVD does not achive the 5-star rating is because of the extras. Very good in their own right, but this movie deserved better. Much better. Recomendation - Buy it, and praise it.
Rating:
Summary: he washed away some scum of the earth
Review: I don't understand why Bickle is considered a villian, let alone one of the greatest villians of all time (according to some big list by Time Magazine or something). If anything, he's a hero!! Sure, he wanted to assassinate the governor, and yeah, he probably is a racist, but he killed three bad suckas in order to save a 12 year old girl. That's gotta count for something. Anyway, this movie is perfect. It's like Lost In Translation but with a revenge-seeking lonely psycho in the lead. I love the camera work of scorsese. simply amazing. the nearly one and a half hour documentary is very cool as well. nice commentaries from peter boyle, jodie foster and some guys who worked on the movie.
Rating:
Summary: ignore the negative reviewer
Review: The reviewer from palm harbor,florida asking "was there a point to this?" obviously was either too young or lacking in taste or had a very narrow mind.This movie is a classic,and the music score by the late Bernard Hermann is anything but cheesy.Apparently the reviewer`s idea of a good film is "car 54 where are you?" with david johansen.
Rating: 
Summary: Was there a point to this?
Review: Overrated piece of !@#$. Absolutely NOTHING happens in this movie other than being forced to listen to the same incredibly cheesy music over and over and over again. After an hour and a half of wondering if anything is ever going to happen, DeNiro shoots a couple people. The end. Wow. What was all the hype about? Genius? Artsy? I don't see it. Don't waste your time. Is this movie highly rated for any other reason than being one of DeNiro's earlier films? I rented this movie because I saw it on a program "The 100 most thrilling movies of all time". What a joke. I'm sorry I wasted the $3.50 to rent the DVD.
Rating:
Summary: Robert DeNiro's best role
Review: Taxi Driver is set in New York, and focuses on a loner cab driver named Travis Brickle ( Robert De Niro). Travis is a somewhat mentally unstable Vietnam vet, who is sickened by the sleaze and violence that he sees at night on the streets of New York. One night, Travis has an encounter with a young prostitute named Iris (Jodie Foster) and becomes determined to persuade her to leave her pimp (Harvey Kietel). As Travis slowly decends into depression, paranoia, and overall madness, he becomes determined to rid the streets of crime himself. Taxi Driver is without a doubt one of the best films I have ever seen. The reason the story is so great, is because it involves a taxi driver whose only human contact is the fares that he takes, which forces him to concentrate on the worst that society has to offer. This is what makes Travis feel like he is the only solution to society's problems. The film slowly takes you through each step of Travis's decent into madness. Travis Brickle is Robert De Niro's best performance in my opinion. DeNiro's ability to slowly break down the character is amazing, and watching De Niro transform himself into a crazy vigilante will give you the creeps. This includes the classic scene with De Niro standing in front of the mirror saying "You talkin to me?!!". Jodi Foster, Harvey Kietel, Peter Boyle, and the rest of the cast were all great in their roles as well. Overall, Taxi Driver is one of my favorite films. The film effectively showcases the scum of society and the creation of a crazy vigilante, and Robert De Niro gives the best performance of his career. The DVD features an oustanding making of featurette featuring Robert De Niro, Jodi Foster, and director Martin Scorsese. A solid 5 stars...
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