Taxi Driver

Taxi Driver. 1976 Columbia Pictures.
Starring: Robert De Niro, Cybill Shepherd, Jodie Foster, Peter Boyle, Harvey Keitel, Leonard Harris, Albert Brooks
Director: Martin Scorsese
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The story of Travis Bickle (De Niro), an honorably discharged Marine who leads a lonely and depressing life. He ends up settling in Manhattan, taking a job as a night time taxi driver thanks to his insomnia, working up to 14 hours a night, and spending time in seedy porn theaters after work...well, because he still can't sleep.

Travis becomes romantically interested in Betsy (Shepherd), who volunteers for New York Senator Charles Palantine (Harris), who is seeking the presidential nomination for his party, promising dramatic social change. Betsy agrees to go on a date with Travis after they meet for coffee, since he sympathized with her own loneliness. Unfortunately, Travis has no idea how to treat a woman, and ends up taking her to a Swedish sex ed film (Language of Love), which offends Betsy, and she leaves in a cab alone. Travis unsuccessfully tries to reconcile with her the next day.

Rejected and depressed, Bickle's thoughts turn violent, and his disgust for the petty crime (especially prostitution) he sees while working drives him into an intense physical training program. Travis also buys some illegal weaponry and practices his menacing speech while practicing with drawing his pistol from a homemade holster on his arm. Yes, "you talkin' to me?" The line that everyone knows. Travis also develops an intense interest in Senator Palantine's public appearances, somehow blaming the presidential hopeful for his own failure at winning Betsy's heart, and perhaps adding the senator to his list of targets. Bickle walks into a robbery in a run-down grocery store one night, and shoots the robber in the face. Instead of phoning the police, the shop owner tells Travis to free (he has no permit for his weapons), and starts beating the wounded criminal with a steel pole.

One night, Iris (Foster), who is a 12-year-old prostitute, gets in Bickle's cab, trying to escape her pimp, "Sport" (Keitel). Travis is stunned enough that he doesn't react, and Sport gives him a crumbled twenty dollar bill before hauling Iris away. Travis, feeling guilty about not helping her, seeks Iris out later, and while he does pay for her time, he instead tries talking her out of a life of prostitution. This becomes Bickle's new obsession.

Travis tries to kill Senator Palantine, but is scared off by Secret Service agents. Regrouping in his apartment, Travis goes back out and shoots Sport in the abdomen, before storming the brothel, killing a bouncer. Bickle murders Sport (who had tried to crawl after Travis) as well as the mafioso who had paid to spend time with Iris (yes, that's awkwardly phrased). After that, Travis tries to kill himself, but he's used up his ammunition, so he calmly waits on a sofa until the police show up, where he simply pretends to kill himself when the cops find him. A brief epilogue follows, where Travis is being hailed as a hero for saving Iris from a life of prostitution (including a congratulatory note from Senator Palantine). He downplays the positive attention and returns to work, giving Betsy a free ride, and she also makes note of Bickle's newfound media fame (the epilogue could be imagined; interpret it as you will).

Highly, highly, highly recommended movie.