Consistently great acting

[Reno]

I watched it again recently, and I was surprised by my reaction. I didn't root for him. Travis Bickle is a pathetic human being on every count. His reaction to the world around him is pathetic. But de Niro gives him dignity. He can't help it, seems to me.

I'm confused by that film, tbh. Confused in many ways as to why it was made. If you're going to do that, make a film about how disgusting everything is, do it all the way in a Hubert Selby style.

And the lingering shots of the black pimps? Harvey Keitel's character was originally supposed to be black, but they changed it because they thought it would look racist. That's bizarre to me. Leaving the only black characters as wordless pimps plus one other taxi driver, to whom Bickle can barely bring himself to talk, only makes the whole thing feel more racist to me.

The film doesn't condescend to Travis Bickle but it doesn't endorse his views, it just doesn't hit you over the head with its message like so many contemporary films would. The end is meant to be ironic and it's very different from right wing vigilante fantasies like Dirty Harry or Death Wish. Bickle is not fine by the end and the next time he explodes he won't be seen as the model citizen by the media, which of course is a joke considering what we learn about him.

As to racism, it seems like the film can't get it right either way according to you. They made the pedo pimp white, which was the was the way to go. Today they would possibly include a sympathetic black character to address possible complaints about representation, something which often strikes me as forced.

 

[littlebabyjesus]

The film doesn't condescend to Travis Bickle but it doesn't endorse his views, it just doesn't hit you over the head with its message like so many contemporary films would. The end is meant to be ironic and it's very different from what right wing fantasies like Dirty Harry or Death Wish did.

As to racism, it seems like the film can't get it right either way according to you. They made the pedo pimp white, which was the was the way to go. Today they would possibly include a sympathetic black character to address complaints about representation, something which often strikes me as forced.

I know the end is meant to be ironic. A dying fantasy, perhaps? We're not told. Clearly that didn't happen. It doesn't quite work for me, but that's another thing. If it's his fantasy, I think his meeting again with Cybil Shephard shows a subtlety of which he wouldn't have been capable. The parents of Jodie Foster thanking him, fine, sure, he'd be fantasising that, but not the CS stuff.

As for racism, among the many things Bickle is disgusted by is black people. All black people. Why not let him take out his fantasy of doing good on a black pedo pimp? As it is, the black pimps are left as wordless extras. That feels like a cop-out to me.

 

[littlebabyjesus]

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that there should have been a sympathetic black character in there. Thinking through every single character in the film, the only sympathetic one I can think of is Jodie Foster, and she's a child. All the adults are vile in their own way.

 

[Reno]

I know the end is meant to be ironic. A dying fantasy, perhaps? We're not told. Clearly that didn't happen. It doesn't quite work for me, but that's another thing. If it's his fantasy, I think his meeting again with Cybil Shephard shows a subtlety of which he wouldn't have been capable. The parents of Jodie Foster thanking him, fine, sure, he'd be fantasising that, but not the CS stuff.

As for racism, among the many things Bickle is disgusted by is black people. All black people. Why not let him take out his fantasy of doing good on a black pedo pimp? As it is, the black pimps are left as wordless extras. That feels like a cop-out to me.

I don't buy the death dream interpretation. I think the end does happen, he is just on a brief high from his perceived triumph and he acts the model citizen, but he still is utterly fucked in the head.
I think it's absurd that you call the film racist for exactly what it isn't doing, give the film one major black character and then make him a monster. The lingering shots of black characters are there to briefly give you Bickle's POV, but by making the worst character black it would have confirmed that his racism. Anyways I'm already bored with this line of discussion, so I'll leave it here.

 

[littlebabyjesus]

I don't buy the death dream interpretation. I think the end does happen, he is just on a brief high from his perceived triumph and he acts the model citizen, but he still is utterly fucked in the head.

Ok, you're bored fair enough.

If you watch the film again, look out for the lingering shots on the black extras. The sharp-suited pimps. None of them is white! The film's a mess and a cop-out, and I genuinely have no idea why it was made.

 

[DaveCinzano]

Rutger Hauer is a decent actor in the right role, but has mostly been in low rent straight-to-video stinkers, his flabby rump has never seen the inside of a gym and he is Dutch.

Impeccable one-sentence takedown

 

[Casually Red]

Nicol Williamson...you cantz

 

[Reno]

Ok, you're bored fair enough.

If you watch the film again, look out for the lingering shots on the black extras. The sharp-suited pimps. None of them is white! The film's a mess and a cop-out, and I genuinely have no idea why it was made.

You appear to be in a small minority in your assessment of what is considered to be one of the key films of the 70s.

 

[Casually Red]

Oh and James Mason.

Yes....and James mason .

And James coburn .

And rod fucking Steiger .

 

[Casually Red]

And Helen fucking mirren


Jeez

 

[Humberto]

Duvall

 

[Casually Red]

Impeccable one-sentence takedown

In fairness..fucking hobo with a fucking wtf shotgun..

Wtf

Troma territory there

 

[Casually Red]

I don't buy the death dream interpretation. I think the end does happen, he is just on a brief high from his perceived triumph and he acts the model citizen, but he still is utterly fucked in the head.
I think it's absurd that you call the film racist for exactly what it isn't doing, give the film one major black character and then make him a monster. The lingering shots of black characters are there to briefly give you Bickle's POV, but by making the worst character black it would have confirmed that his racism. Anyways I'm already bored with this line of discussion, so I'll leave it here.

Look..travis Bickle blew the fuckout of a bunch of scummy cunts who needed shot big time . The hue of their pigmentation was a distant second . Saville should have been there really .but FFs. That debates getting into " privilege" territory .

 

[Casually Red]

Ok, you're bored fair enough.

If you watch the film again, look out for the lingering shots on the black extras. The sharp-suited pimps. None of them is white! The film's a mess and a cop-out, and I genuinely have no idea why it was made.

FFs look out for darth vader if that's the case . He's as black as the ace of spades . Jesus Christ man .
There are actually some bad black people out there . Bad pinps who are actually black .You're arguing for bleeding airbrushing of the inner city . Wise up . It's only a film . Fucking pimps have to have racial quotas now...wtf

 

[billy_bob]

Gene Hackman, John Turturro, John Goodman, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Luis Guzmán, Catherine Keener - all consistently good even in mediocre films.

And if I could like post #40 five or six times (alsoknownas) I would. Samantha Morton's superb.

 

[Gingerman]

Alec Guinness.....

 

[Reno]

Alec Guinness.....

Though let's draw the curtains over his minstrel turn in A Passage to India.

 

[Gingerman]

Though let's draw the curtains over his minstrel turn in A Passage to India.

Indeedy.....

 

[sheothebudworths]

I watched it again recently, and I was surprised by my reaction. I didn't root for him. Travis Bickle is a pathetic human being on every count. His reaction to the world around him is pathetic. But de Niro gives him dignity. He can't help it, seems to me.

I'm confused by that film, tbh. Confused in many ways as to why it was made. If you're going to do that, make a film about how disgusting everything is, do it all the way in a Hubert Selby style.

And the lingering shots of the black pimps? Harvey Keitel's character was originally supposed to be black, but they changed it because they thought it would look racist. That's bizarre to me. Leaving the only black characters as wordless pimps plus one other taxi driver, to whom Bickle can barely bring himself to talk, only makes the whole thing feel more racist to me.

I saw Taxi Driver for the first time at an all night showing at the Scala in King's Cross with my friend, when there was a man sitting right behind us who laughed very loudly, randomly and inappropriately the whole way through it which had us shitting ourselves, tbh but defo added to the tension. Early 90's 3D
I did watch it again but I've never been able to get forget that initial experience enough to decide where the unease comes from!
Only matched by seeing Leaving Las Vegas at one of the tiny screens at the Swiss Centre in Leicester Sq, on my own, where a man in a virtually empty day time screening, wearing a mac *moved* shortly after it started and came and sat right next to me! I fucking moved that time, tbf!

Two massively stark films though, where that first experience of watching them settled in.

I'm talking bollocks - I'm not sure there's any point to this - I was guided to this thread by seeing Alice through the looking glass, today

Ah, well