Taxi Driver

Excellent

Taxi Driver is one my favorite films of all time. I love 70's films like Apocalypse Now, Clockwork Orange, Get Carter, Godfather and others that broke new grounds in filmmaking in general. It's my favorite era of film-making next to Classic Hollywood and the 80's. Taxi Driver is very effective portrayal of New York, loneliness, violence and does it so well that no film afterwards has managed to capture it. Every single aspect of the film works. The performance by Robert De Niro has become an iconic. The direction by Martin Scorsese is very stylish and gives Taxi Driver a unforgettable look. The music by Alfred Hitchcock's composer Bernard Herrmann (Psycho, Vertigo) gives the film another level of atmosphere and mood. There are great supporting cast that includes Jodie Foster, Albert Brooks, Harvey Keitel, Cybill Shepherd and Peter Boyle. While Taxi Driver is mostly De Niro's show, these actors give very good supporting performances. There is no real point talking about the plot of this film because most of you have heard about it in one way or another. It's an iconic film with iconic performance and iconic scenes that influenced modern pop-culture. It's a true masterpiece. This DVD is a 2 Disc set with great amount of extra features. Picture quality is superb as is the sound quality. There are also stills from the movie which are quite nice. Extra Feature: *Commentary track by writer Paul Schrader *Commentary track by Professor Robert Kolker *Original Screenplay *Interview with Martin Scorsese *Making Taxi Driver - 70 min long making of documentary *Travis New York - Interview with 1970's New York mayor *Travis New York Locations - Films location comparison now and then *Introduction to Storyboards by Martin Scorsese *Storyboard to Film Comparison *Animated Photo Galleries *Scorsese at Work - Photo Montage *God's Lonely Man - interview with screenwriter *Influence and Appreciation: Martin Scorsese Tribute - Oliver Stone, Robert De Niro and others talk about Scorsese *Taxi Driver Stories - Real life taxi drivers tell real life stories *Producing Taxi Driver - Interview with producer. *************************************************************************************************************************** This DVD is a must have for any collection. It's very well put together. There are a lot of extra content that cover every angle of the process of making Taxi Driver. If you are a fan of cinema you should get this one without a second doubt.

Very good quality and very good price

This is one of the Martin Scorsese movie's that you have to see, it is a bit of a slow paced movie but that just gives it time to tell you the story and let you try to understand Robert De Niro's character, and why he feels the way he does, when he looks at his surroundings in New York at that time. If you are not familiar with what I mean then look at movies based in New York in the 1970's and compare them with movies based in New York today, and you can see how much New York has changed. The 1970's been very sleazy, covered in graffiti and crime infested in a lot of areas, compared to how much cleaner New York is today. There is still crime in New York, just like there is in most other big cities around the world, but you can definitely see the difference. This is a good movie and a must see for fans of Robert De Niro and Martin Scorsese.

This is a brilliant film; for me it's aesthetically beautiful (the Taxi bumper shots showing the bright lights of New York are stunning), it's also got a lovely melancholic jazz soundtrack that highlights Travis' perceived pointlessness and ambling in and through life. (Plot spoilers) The story is simple: an insomniac wants to better spend his sleepless nights so enrols to drive taxis, slowly but surely falling into the abyss of loneliness and insanity. He witnesses the depraved and seedy nature of New York at night (prostitutes, drug dealers et al.) and brands them the scum of the earth. This, ironically, coming from a man who regularly visits dirty movie theatres. At the same time, we see Travis develop obsessions with Betsy who is a campaign worker for Palantine, a presidential candidate. Soon after their relationship develops, Travis makes the mistake of taking her to one of the aforementioned dirty movies, which immediately sees an end to this relationship. Travis later angrily confronts her and makes various violent remarks towards her, the first sign of his unstable mental state. Throughout the film Travis encounters a young child prostitute who he feels is being forced against her will to ply her trade. Meanwhile he begins training and preparing to assassinate Palantine. When it comes to it however, he fails to do so after being spotted by Secret Service Agents before he attempts the assassination. His desire to exact violence upon those he despises (Palantine for his connection to Betsy) leads him to the location of the child prostitute who he feels he must help escape from prostitution. Therefore, he murders her pimp, the bouncer and her customer (these being the scum of the earth that he despises). He is injured in the battle and fails to commit suicide. Later he awakes from a coma to a hero's welcome for helping Iris (the child prostitute) return to her parents and Betsy showing renewed interest in Travis. The irony here being that had he been successful in assassinating Palantine he would have been deemed evil but now he is a hero. On note of the Blu-ray itself: WOW! For a film made in 70s this is one crisp picture!! I can't rave enough about how good the picture quality is; I must compare it to the recently released Star Wars Blu-rays and Taxi Driver blows those away. Yes, there are certain scenes where the camera pans and it seems as if the screen is jolting a bit and other scenes aren't quite as good quality as others but boy are the HQ scenes GOOD and the Low Quality scenes are still dozens of times higher than I could've hoped for in a 70s film. Bravo to Scorsese, De Niro et al.!

'Taxi Driver' is a 1976 release starring Robert de Niro as the film's anti hero Travis Bickle. Bickle is a Vietnam War veteran who returns to New York and becomes disgusted with the moral decay of the city. In order to distract himself and overcome his insomnia, he takes a job as a night-shift taxi driver and visits adult movie theatres. Later he spies an 'angel' named Betsy (Cybill Shepherd) and becomes besotted with her. After taking her to see an adult movie, she is disgusted and rejects him. Bickle is devastated by the rejection and from this point on his life starts to unravel. He begins to harbour violent thoughts that need to find an outlet. He eventually finds a target for his anger: Matthew 'Sport' Higgins (Harvey Keitel) who pimps out young girls, including a 12-year-old Iris Steensma (Jodie Foster). Bickle takes pity on Iris and promises to return her to her family and a better life in Pittsburgh. The stage is set for a violent finale and very violent it is. 'Taxi Driver' was directed by Martin Scorsese. One of the themes running through his considerable body of work is the presence of good and evil vying for supremacy in the soul of one man. This theme would find its greatest expression in Scorsese's movie adaption of Nikos Kazantzakis' book 'The Last Temptation of Christ' in which the soul of Jesus is the arena where spirit and flesh do battle. In 'Taxi Driver' it is Travis Bickle who plays the role of 'Jesus', an avenging angel who wants to rescue sweet Iris from her evil pimp 'Sport'. If this has to be done with guns and knives, then so be it. There is irony running through this movie and it is no coincidence that Scorsese was a big fan of Alfred Hitchcock, who used irony to great effect in his films. Incidentally, the moody score to 'Taxi Driver' was composed by Bernard Herrmann who had scored seven films for Hitchcock, including 'Vertigo' (1958) and 'Psycho' (1960). Sadly, Herrmann passed away on December 24, 1975, in his hotel in Los Angeles the day after completing the 'Taxi Driver' soundtrack. This is definitely an iconic 70s movie and de Niro's portrayal of a man on the edge won him an Oscar nomination. (He lost out to Peter Finch who won Best Actor for 'Network'.) Definitely not to be missed.

Great film! I haven't seen it on TV for a long time so I decided to get it on DVD.

I love New York City. I see it as the ideal home, a fine place to start in the land of opportunity. Then I saw 'Taxi Driver' and realized that if I'd been an adolescent during the 1970's, I'd probably have thought differently. Martin Scorsese, critically acclaimed movie legend and director of films such as 'Goodfellas, 'Raging Bull' and 'Mean Streets' teams up with his best leading man, Mr Robert De Niro, in what is the tale of a socially repressed insomniac, named Travis Bickle, who takes up a job as a taxi driver, to occupy himself in the night. As the film progresses, we see Travis grow more and more determined to put an end to the 'scum' of New York, when he realizes that the politician Palantine is unable to do this. This opposition to the man he once supported is in part triggered by his potential relationship with one of his employees, Betsy, which after a bad date is never again to resurface. Bickle, a former marine during the Vietnam War, is then motivated to become a vigilante, after acknowledging that the system isn't going to listen to him, a lowly taxi driver, so he must become the system that will clean up the streets. This film has been categorised as a psychological thriller of sorts, and its no wonder when you see the madness that can be provoked by a man who goes to war. He comes back to his city, knowing the sanctity of life and wishing he could fit in, but he is already too aware of the world he lives in, whilst the rest of the city, corrupt and materialistic walks by. The tension races throughout the film, all the way up to the big climax, where Travis murders three men, in order to rescue Iris (Jodie Foster), a prostitute, only in her late teens. The end is for you, the viewer to enjoy for yourself, seeing as the vibe you've probably picked up from this review, is what I hope to be a positive one. So positive, that you'll be motivated to buy it right now and watch it for yourself, the cinematic and New York landmark that is Taxi Driver.

TAXI DRIVER is an iconic film, considered by many to be a masterpiece and the crowning achievement of both Martin Scorsese and Robert DeNiro. Whatever your opinion this is a powerful film that starts strong and never lets up that has also stood the test of time. Everything in the movie is done so realistically that the story could still be told today. Robert Deniro plays Travis. We know little about him other than that he is an ex marine and a deep insomniac. He also sees the world as a dirty place that needs to be cleaned up. He becomes a taxi driver in the city of New York which takes on a realistic role of its own here. We see the two sides of everything and the same goes for New York. Nothing is held back on showing the realistic gritty underside of the city. But what of the transfer of this movie classic to blu ray. Seems like all the classics are being brought to blu ray, some more succesfully than others. The questions are always how does it look, is it an improvement over the dvd and does it bring the film to new life. TAXI DRIVER was the first film to receive an enhanced 4k restoration and what it does is perform magic on a decades old film. The video presentation is purely amazing. It is funny for when the film starts the Columbia logo is very fuzzy and then the movie starts. It is clear, crisp with colors strong. The film is very definitive in that scenes are either nighttime or daytime, dark or light. The blacks and dark colors are brilliant and all color ratios amazing. Whites contrast perfectly. No matter what the scene everything pops. The night scenes are very realistic and when colors are introduced they are vibrant and real. Nothing is overenhanced. Instead the film looks the way it must have when released originally in theaters. It is leaps and bounds over any dvd version. The climactic scene at the end is brought to new devastating life with this new restoration. Flesh tones are also perfect. Blu ray is put to amazing use here restoring this classic film to all its glory. The graininess here is meant to be here. It represents New York City in full detail. And the audio is just as perfect. The DTS 5.1 audio allows the amazing soundtrack to fully blossom and soar over the entire film. The score here tells the story as much as any character or visual. And dialogue is strong and present. Nothing is wrong here. The film itself is told in a way that it is open to many different interpretations but the blu ray itself needs no debate. It is spectacular. I will reiterate again. The film looks as pure and original as when in the theaters restored to its true glory. Do not hesitate to double dip if you own the dvd. This blu ray shows the movie as a whole new experience. I give this blu ray my highest recommendations.

Taxi Driver est un véritable chef-d’œuvre du cinéma, porté par une performance inoubliable de Robert De Niro. Le film nous plonge dans l’esprit troublé de Travis Bickle, avec une intensité rare et une atmosphère captivante du début à la fin.

Über Martin Scorseses bahnbrechend-wegweisendes Meisterwerk "Taxi Driver" wurde natürlich schon alles gesagt. Angesichts der Sichtung dieser neuen, wunderbar umgesetzten Blu-Ray erscheint es mir jedoch sinnvoll, dieses unter meinen Top 10-Lieblingsfilmen befindliche, bereits weit über 20 mal gesehene und über die Jahre immer wieder tiefgehend analysierte Kunstwerk mit ein paar Worten persönlich zu würdigen. Wer diese Worte nicht lesen will und nur an der Umsetzung und den Bonusfeatures interessiert ist, kann die nächsten Paragrafen gerne überspringen. "Taxi Driver" ist ein Film, der einen, wenn man ihn einmal gesehen hat, nie wieder loslässt und auch nach zigmaligem Ansehen absolut nichts an seiner beispiellosen Intensität und förmlich spürbarer, sich in einer Welt zwischen fieberhaftem Wach- und Traumzustand wandelnden Atmosphäre verliert. "Taxi Driver" ist wahrscheinlich die essentielle Charakterstudie, einer der essentiellen Nacht-, New York-, ja eigentlich auch Großstadtfilme und der wohl zentrale Film über Einsamkeit. Manche Filme verlieren ja über die Zeit an Kraft, sind nicht mehr zeitgemäß oder wirken technisch veraltet, sodass der Zugang für neue Zuschauer vielleicht schwer fallen kann. Aber wer auch nur im mindesten Filmkunst gegenüber aufgeschlossen ist, der muss eigentlich von "Taxi Driver" fasziniert sein. Der Film ist heute filmisch genau so vital und vibrierend und inhaltlich so relevant, wie auch in den letzten fast vier Jahrzehnten seit seiner Veröffentlichung. Der Film entfaltet jedes Mal wieder, vom ersten bis zum letzten Bild, eine hypnotische, unter die Haut gehende Kraft, auf die man so nicht oft trifft. "Taxi Driver" ist eine hundertprozentig erfüllte künstlerische und persönliche Vision, nicht nur von Scorsese, sondern auch von Drehbuchautor Paul Schrader und Robert De Niro, der mit Travis Bickle eine der ikonischen Performances der Filmgeschichte schafft. Der Film ist so radikal und furchtlos, so bedingungslos in seiner nihilistischen und verbitterten Weltanschauung, wie Filme nur sein können, mit Leib und Seele dem Ziel verbunden, einem sozial unfähigen, womöglich rassistischen Charakter zu folgen, der nicht um die Sympathie der Zuschauer buhlt. Das ist auch eine der entscheidenden Meisterleistungen des Films, denn man ist von dieser dem Wahnsinn verfallenden, seelisch vernarbten Figur einfach magisch angezogen, obwohl man weiß, dass er den falschen Weg einschlägt. Das liegt natürlich auch ganz entscheidend an De Niros einmalig intensiven Method Actor-Präsenz, die Faszination und Sympathie für den Charakter erweckt. Die Darstellung ist grundlegend menschlich, ja oft unschuldig, anmutig, träumerisch, charmant und sogar oft witzig, wodurch das Abdriften in Traurigkeit und abstoßende Hass- und Gewaltfantasien erst so schmerzlich wirkt. Wer das Gefühl von Einsamkeit kennt, der wird sich auch mit Travis Bickle identifizieren müssen. Zudem ist "Taxi Driver" einer der maßgebenden 70er Jahre-Filme. Ein Zeitdokument einer Nachkriegszeit, in der viele junge Männer von ihrem Aufenthalt in Vietnam geschädigt zurück in die Gesellschaft kommen und keinen Anschluss finden, sozial nicht funktionieren können. Doch dieses Kriegstrauma-Element ist nicht entscheidend zum Verstehen des Films, denn die Thematik bleibt zeitlos und universell. Man muss nicht im Krieg gewesen sein oder traumatisiert sein, um Travis Bickle nachvollziehen zu können. Desweiteren ist "Taxi Driver" ein eindrückliches Zeitdokument eines verfallenden, schäbig-zwielichtigen, dampfenden, neonleuchtende, der Hölle gleichenden New York City, eine Stadt, die heute ein ganz anderes Gesicht hat. Die nahezu dokumentarische, aber dennoch durch die Augen von Travis düster stilisiert wirkende Perspektive der urbanen Welt in "Taxi Driver" ist unendlich faszinierend und sucht seinesgleichen. Dazu kommt Bernard Herrmanns tief unter die Haut gehende jazzige Filmmusik, das grundsätzlich nur aus zwei zentralen Hauptmotiven besteht, die Bickles Innenleben und die nächtliche Einsamkeit und Urbanität perfekt untermalen. Besonders bemerkenswert ist auch immer noch die moralische Ambivalenz des Films, die natürlich besonders zum Schluss zum Tragen kommt, die Unterscheidung zwischen Held und Monster. Somit bietet der Film immer noch eine perfekte Grundlage für ausgiebige Diskussionen, denn Scorsese und Schrader ersparen sich eine moralische Wertung des Geschehens, sie zeigen die Welt schlicht so, wie sie ist. Bei all dem Lob für De Niro darf man natürlich auch nicht die brillanten, perfekt besetzten Nebendarsteller vergessen, darunter Cybill Shepherd als engelsähnliche politische Kampagnenhelferin Betsy, in die sich Travis verliebt, Jodie Foster als Kinderprostituierte, Harvey Keitel als ihr farbenfroher und abstoßender Zuhälter oder Albert Brooks, der als Betsys Kollege willkommene Humor in die düstere Welt von "Taxi Driver" bringt. Keine Frage, "Taxi Driver" ist einmalig, in allen Bereichen einzigartig und grundsätzlich makellos umgesetzt. Dem folgt auch die tolle Blu-Ray-Umsetzung: BILD: Das Bild (MPEG4/AVC, 1080p, 1,85:1, 16:9) sah wohl seit der Kinopremiere nie so gut aus. Es entspricht einem neuen 4K-Remastering, das von Scorsese und Kameramann Michael Chapman persönlich überwacht wurde. Man kann definitiv sagen, dass die gewünschte Optik des Films umgesetzt wurde. Das Bild ist meistens herausragend (natürlich dem Alter entsprechend) scharf, das charakteristische feine Filmkorn wurde aber gottseidank nicht entfernt. Lediglich bei Nachtszenen ist das Bild oft grobkörniger und hier und da auch etwas rauschig. Das fällt aber nicht ins Gewicht, so behält der Film auch seine düster-dreckige Qualität. Die Farbwiedergabe ist wunderbar, der Detailumfang vor allem bei Tagesszenen bemerkenswert. TON: Auch im Tonbereich wurde hier ein wunderbarer Job gemacht. Ich kann aktuell nur die Original-Tonspur bewerten, diese (DTS HD Master 5.1) ist aber stellenweise überraschend räumlich. Besonders bei der Musik fällt dies auf, denn verschiedene Klangelemente werden auch subtil auf die hinteren Boxen verteilt. Ansonsten ist der Sound schön kraftvoll, hat viele Höhen und Tiefen. Auch die Stimmen sind sehr gut abgemischt und sind perfekt verständlich. Grundsätzlich ist der Film aber weitestgehend frontlastig abgemischt. Allein die Musik sorgt aber für eine wundervolle Stimmung. EXTRAS: Hier wird wirklich aus dem vollen geschöpft: Neben dem bereits ursprünglich auf der DVD enthaltenen herausragenden Making-Of (Dauer: 1:10) finden sich eine Reihe weiterer, neu produzierter, in HD vorliegenden Extras wieder, die dem Fan wirklich alles bieten, was man sich wünschen kann. Hier das Bonusmaterial: - Interaktives Drehbuch: Wie der Name schon sagt, Paul Schraders Originaldrehbuch läuft im unteren Bilddrittel während des Films mit. Wahlweise kann man aber auch selbst durchscrollen, die Filmgröße einstellen oder Lesezeichen setzen. Ein hübsches Zusatzfeature. - Audiokommentar von Martin Scorsese und Paul Schrader aus dem Jahr 1986 (entstammt der amerikanischen Criterion Collection) - Audiokommentar von Paul Schrader - Audiokommentar von Professor Robert Kolker (Autor des Buchs "A Cinema of Loneliness") - Martin Scorsese über Taxi Driver, New York 2006 (16 Minuten): Hier redet der Regisseur größtenteils über eine Reihe von Filmen, die ihn zu "Taxi Driver" inspiriert haben - Die Produktion (10 Minuten): Produzent Michael Phillips berichtet von der interessanten Entwicklung des Filmprojekts. - Gottes einsamster Mann (22 Minuten): Paul Schrader berichtet ausführlich und sehr persönlich über die Entstehung des Drehbuchs - Einflussnahme und Würdigung: Ein Tribut an Martin Scorsese (18:30 Minuten): Eine Würdigung diverser Weggefährten von Scorsese, darunter Oliver Stone, Schrader, Chapman, Phillips, De Niro, Roger Corman) - Taxifahrer Geschichten (22:23 Minuten): Überaus interessantes Feature, bei dem diverse New Yorker Taxifahrer, hauptsächlich die, die im Film portraitierte Zeit mitgemacht haben, ihre faszinierenden Anekdoten zum Besten geben. - Making-Of (70 Minuten): Siehe oben. Die Entstehung des Films eindrucksvoll rekonstruiert, fast alle wichtigen Mitarbeiter berichten von ihren Erfahrungen. - Travis' New York (06:16 Minuten): Ein Kurzfeature über das New York der 70er, von Michael Chapman und dem ehemaligen New Yorker Bürgermeister Howard Koch kommentiert. - Travis' Plätze in New York (insgesamt 04:49 Minuten): Eine Gegenüberstellung der Drehorte heute und damals in Bewegtbildern. - Vergleiche und Einführung in das Storyboard von Martin Scorsese (04:32 Minuten) - Gegenüberstellung der Storyboards im Film (08:21 Minuten): Unkommentierter Bild-im-Bild-Vergleich - Galerie: bestehend aus Arrangements - Filmmusik (Bernard Herrmann) (02:32 Minuten): Unkommentierte, mit Filmmusik unterlegte, animierte Fotogalerie von Herrmanns Partituren An den Drehplätzen (02:51 Minuten): Unkommentierte, mit Filmmusik und Bickle-Monolog unterlegte Bilder vom Dreh Werbematerial & Mehr (01:44 Minuten): Animierte, von Filmmusik unterlegte Bildergalerie mit Postern, Aushangfotos etc. Martin Scorsese bei der Arbeit (02:47 Minuten): Eine weitere animierte Bildergalerie Das Blu-Ray-Menü ist übrigens auch sehr schön stilecht gestaltet. Schade ist nur, dass es kein Wendecover gibt. Auch über das gewählte Motiv kann man streiten, da es nicht unbedingt die Stimmung und Optik des Films adäquat wiedergibt. Aber ansonsten eine wunderbare Blu-Ray, die man sich als Fan unbedingt zulegen sollte.

Travis Bickle (Robert DeNiro) is a former Marine and a veteran of the Vietnam war. He frequently has trouble sleeping and is plagued by headaches. The pills he takes don't seem to help at all. Because he's likely to be awake all night anyway, Bickle takes a job driving a cab. He prefers the night shift. Scorsese's version of New York is gritty and realistic. Most of the film is shot at night and we see just how crazy some of the people are. It's a crime-ridden world populated by junkies and prostitutes. Bickle hates how much scum exists in the city, and he's referring to the people more than the dirty streets. Bickle is looking for something to brighten up his seedy existence and a woman catches his eye. Betsy (Cybill Shepherd) works in a local office for a senator who is hoping to become the next president. After pestering her for a while, she eventually agrees to go on a date with him. He talks to her in a very straightforward way. It's not clear whether he lacks intelligence, or if he doesn't see any point in hiding the truth about himself. His approach works and leads to one of the funniest scenes in the film when he takes her to see a movie. Other things attract Bickle's attention. He's particularly drawn to Iris (Jodie Foster), who is a 12-year-old prostitute. As his frustration mounts at the disgusting state of the city, he begins to devise a plan to clean up one small part. An incident on the street gives him the idea of saving Iris from her situation and giving her the opportunity to escape from her pimp (Harvey Keitel). It's interesting watching Bickle trying to escape his miserable existence. He figures out how to buy and use weapons and starts working out to strengthen his body. All the while, there's mounting tension, and we sense that Bickle is close to losing touch with reality completely. The supporting cast is strong, with Shepherd, Foster and Keitel all playing their parts well. You'll also see Peter Boyle and Albert Brooks. One of the most surprising scenes involves a cameo from Scorsese. His character might even be the catalyst for the change which eventually occurs in Bickle. I have to mention Scorsese's decision to shoot most of the scenes at night. It was an inspired choice and adds so much atmosphere to the film. Bernard Herrmann's saxophone-heavy score is also an important part of the mix and helps helps transport us into Bickle's troubled world. De Niro has produced some incredible performances over the past 40 years and Travis Bickle is probably my favorite De Niro character. There's so much going on beneath the surface and De Niro portrays much of it with his body language. The meaning of the conclusion is open to debate, but if you take it purely at face value, it's quite uplifting. The Blu-ray presentation adds a lot to the experience and is a must-own for fans of the film.

Un film indimenticabile ... robert de niro giovane ... gran film ! 💪