TAXI DRIVER Movie Reaction (Yeah, I'm REACTING TO YOU!!!)

[@thomasknash]

Second comment: As for the language in the film: I think it reflects not just the period it was made but also the reality of the setting. Criminals, the poor, and blue collar/working class people (like pimps, prostitutes, & cab drivers) are not politically correct people. Especially one who is mentally ill & about to explode in rage like Travis. I think modern movies are too infantile & worrying too much about offending their viewers, especially those that are meant for adults. Adults shouldn’t need things censored to them. If anything so many modern movies are so sanitized they don’t resemble anything like real life.

[@gazoontight]

It would be interesting to observe the reaction of modern day people if it would be possible to transport them to 1970s New York City.

[@highstimulation2497]

adults don't need things censored. indeed. this.

[@dx315]

Check out "Good Time" from 2017 if you like Taxi Driver and appreciate a gritty story.

[@matthewwhite7473]

Couldn't agree more. It's sickening how much modern films and television feel the need to censor every little thing that's offensive. The world is an offensive place, full of evil and torment, if you fail to include that in stories then the audience has nothing to relate the story to. It is no longer grounded in any reality. This is why I think a lot of people collect and re-watch these great films, because they are from an era when film creators could put anything on screen and more often then not, they desired to portray realistic, immersive stories that the audience could learn something from or be impacted by. You remove the harshness of life from a story and you don't have a story anymore. I for one believe if this censorship continues we won't even be able to stream movies like this anymore, it's getting that bad. That's why I still buy DVD's because I'll be damned if I am going to let the government tell me what is safe or unsafe for me and my family to watch. Especially seeing most of the crap they are spewing out these days is far more political and damaging then any of this old stuff.

[@dmp1520]

not just that era ANY ERA. ALL civilizations and times have people , most people, certainly street hardened people and certainly men, who use curse words, profanity, insults, breaking balls etc... its the attitude of hollywood the media and univeristies and people these days that is wrong , infantile, stupid and ultimately moe akin to censorship than anything wrong with these films. The sopranos is filled with cursing and insults and colourfull language and thats why its so realistic and fun and hilarious and truthfull! real people dont have a focus group to tell them whihc words can or cant be used ....

[@ThomasCorp]

Definitely one of Scorsese's most iconic films. A particular highlight of it is the haunting final score by Bernard Herrmann who died shortly after completing it. I would say he should have won the Oscar for it, but to be fair, that was the same year as Jerry Goldsmith's score for The Omen, so there was tough competition.

[@jordantaylor260]

If by “iconic” you mean “problematic sexist pile of shit” then you’ve nailed it.

[@irvinnovik6643]

@@jordantaylor260 whaaa??😂

[@jordantaylor260]

@@irvinnovik6643 You, my tiny minded friend, are my absolute favourite. It's not enough for you to be a f****wit. You're trying to take it to a different level: that of the indifferent troll. Supposedly someone who knows something we don't. Well, let's see what you know, with your one word, one emoji answers that are supposed to provide all the valid arguments. I can see your name is Eastern European in origin, so (yawn) that's where you're from or it's you're background. What an absolute hive of misogyny, homophobia, superstition and outright backwards thinking, lead by conditioning from a young age into a mindset that suits the status quo. That's the birth place of your non-dimensional idiocy. But do tell me, what do you mean by "whaaaa" (not a full word) or a laughing emoji? I suppose that's supposed to show some level of intellectual superiority, like that Taliban bloke who started laughing a few weeks ago when he was asked if women would be allowed into positions of government in Afghanistan? Is that what you think? I bet it is, Irvin the Moron. Just show misplaced smugness in place of actual intelligence backed by reasoned arguments. That'll work. It's also a sign of somebody with nothing to say. You don't have an opinion or an argument. You simply believe a thing and that's it, because that's what you were told. The worst kind of sheep. Mindless. You're the detritus of humanity. A worthless, thoughtless phantom who flits from one situation to the next, merely existing, never forging anything for yourself. When we rid ourselves of dregs like you it will be a happy day. You will die decrepit and alone, without understanding. Have a nice day.

[@cjmacq-vg8um]

YES! the score doesn't recieve enough credit. herrmann scored many iconic films including hitchcock's "psycho!" this movie demonstrates the thin line between heroism and psychosis. travis was NO HERO! he was a maniac on the verge of a complete breakdown. he failed to murder his primary target, a politician, and then proceeded to his secondary target, a pimp. he wasn't seeking justice or the common good. he was looking for someone to kill. and because of whom he ultimately murdered he was wrongly declared by society a hero instead of the psychotic villain that he actually was.

[@vickjr98]

@@jordantaylor260 don't be an idiot

[@MrUndersolo]

Yeah, that was Martin Scorsese in the backseat. He even had a book about his career named after his role in the film: 'Man Watching Silhouette'. Glad you picked this one... The real monster in the film is loneliness. And it did win awards in '76, including the Palme d'Or at Cannes!

[@betsyduane3461]

He's also sitting on the wall in the black T-shirt at 4:48

[@rheymarvinsalestre4075]

@@betsyduane3461 Saw that in my first viewing. Some Hitchcock-like cameo he made there. He also did one on Raging Bull, right before the end.

[@cjmacq-vg8um]

scorcese can also be seen as cybill shepherd makes her entrance to the film walking in slow motion across the screen. you can see him sitting in the background watching her pass by. the real monster in this film IS PSYCHOSIS and DELUSION! notice we, the audience, don't really know if what travis sees is real or a paranoid delusion. this movie demonstrates the thin line between heroism and psychosis. travis was NO HERO! he was a maniac on the verge of a complete breakdown. he failed to murder his primary target, a politician, and then proceeded to his secondary target, a pimp. he wasn't seeking justice or the common good. he was looking for someone to kill. and because of whom he ultimately murdered he was wrongly declared by society a hero instead of the psychotic villain that he actually was.

[@highstimulation2497]

interesting indeed. I've seen this film more than once, long ago and longer still ago. Sometimes I fancy myself as lonely, but then I hear that this film is about isolation, alienation, then I remember that I in fact have MANY friends, and then I realize that whatever I am, lonely is not it. :)

[@robertmartinez2790]

Another fact about the scene is the person who was actually supposed to play this character did not follow through so Martin Scorsese played the scene himself.

[@michaelbuhl4250]

I disagree with your assessment of the ending of the movie. My take on it is that we, the audience know that Travis is extremely unstable and what he is capable of; however, because of who he kills he is lauded as a hero by the public and allowed to go free. He could just as easily have killed a political candidate. (That could be a set up for jokes about the value of politicians, but we'll set that aside for now.) It just so happens that the mental illness that could have caused Travis to assassinate a politician was, instead, channeled into killing people prostituting a child. There is no moment of reform or realization for Travis. The fact that he continues to blend into society at the end of the film is especially disturbing. I think the ending of the Scorsese movie *The King of Comedy* is a sort of reverse take on this. If you liked Albert Brooks, *Defending Your Life* , *Lost in America* , and *Real Life* are all pretty funny.

[@ThomasCorp]

I believe that Paul Schrader said that when he wrote this, his intent was more or less word for word your take on the ending.

[@ronbock8291]

I’ve always assumed that the ending was Travis’s hallucination while he died.

[@hoagsmash4188]

@@ronbock8291 You're exactly correct. He died on the couch, the rest was hallucinated while he was dying.

[@pete_lind]

@@ronbock8291 Also how its filmed from above , suggest Travis is watching his dead body on the sofa .

[@carlhartwell7978]

@@pete_lind That may be right, I don't mind sitting on the fence on that one. But regardless, it's entirely likely that Travis would have been seen as a vigilante/anti hero type by at least the public even if he did die and almost a given that Iris' family would have praised him in death in the same way as was portrayed in whatever you perceive the ending to be.

[@cesarnarro6013]

I feel that the language in this movie is fairly accurate to what a taxi driver in NYC would have heard in the 70's

[@Joe-hh8gd]

Yep. And not just cabbies. Nearly everybody. And if you need movie verification of that, try Saturday Night Fever, The French Connection, Serpico, etc etc etc

[@gazoontight]

I wonder how people nowadays would get along if they woke up in 1970s New York City.

[@mohammedashian8094]

De Niro would actually drive taxi passengers in between takes so he could get more in the role and he has a taxi driver’s license and there was one passenger who recognized him

[@hieuneo7085]

@@gazoontight terrible time to woke up

[@ramonacosta2647]

@@gazoontight They'd be in perpetual shock.

[@dunringill1747]

The Scorsese movie "The King of Comedy" is another influence on "The Joker".

[@thanosjackson]

I actually like The King Of Comedy more than Taxi Driver ( I still love Taxi Driver a lot). I think Taxi Driver has a better soundtrack though.

[@thomasknash]

So is Sidney Lumet’s DOG DAY AFTERNOON and NETWORK.

[@Joe-hh8gd]

Yep. Phoenix even wears the same red jacket as DeNiro.

[@paogate1384]

Yup your right, Scorsese was asked the direct The Joker that’s where the influence came from, he declined because of other projects

[@paogate1384]

Paul Schroeder was a brilliant screen writer, he also directed a hidden Jem called Blue Collar

[@ElliotNesterman]

DeNiro and Jodie Foster were nominated for Oscars, but didn't win. However, they both won Golden Globes. The film won the Palme d'Or at Cannes.

[@darrellpalmer]

"We know better now." I disagree. Your surprise at the breadth of the language we spoke back then points to the way "acceptable" has become so incredibly narrowly defined that an increasing number of people find themselves to be them instead of us. Social media has provided a gathering place for them to band together. The polarization of our country is the result of this us and them mentality.

[@sjw5797]

I wouldn't sweat it too much. Trends in fashionable speech come and go. Most people shrug a lot of it off learn from other parts of it (like, the N-word really, really is offensive), and end up with a somewhat modified form of the kind of speech that seems natural to them. The more unnatural aspects of newfangled speech (some of the pronoun stuff) will prove to be a passing fad.

[@matthunter983]

"language can be horrible"?...Shakespeare gasps

[@harveybojangle475]

I think this has less to do with economic disadvantage and more to do with loneliness itself. Bickle's quote, "There's no escape. I'm God's lonely man" is the driving force here, I think.

[@desmondpowell3205]

There is nothing wrong with the language in this movie! I think they know better back than, back when you didn’t get canceled for every little silly thing!!!

[@highstimulation2497]

I am 46, I am not a right winger, and I don't understand why people would be offended by such language in 'movies,' in stories, particularly stories about the relevant time period, today included, for it's not like there aren't crazy racist people, some of them politicians, actually SAYING racist things today. Yes, it's offensive. Yes it's wrong and yes people shouldn't do it, but being offended that it is even 'depicted,' particularly in a story not only set but MADE 50 years ago is just foolish. Come on, people, life isn't a fairy-tale, and movies and any other stories about culture/the world/existence need to be truthful, they can't pretend people never used racist language, that's in a way almost as bad as the right wingers white-washing real-life slavery itself in actual textbooks in actual schools. Racism and racist language are wrong, but be offended by the right things, by people actually being racist and actually using racist language, not by depictions of them in films for accuracy's sake.

[@Ben_diez]

nah, it's not about canceling, it's just really weird nowadays

[@desmondpowell3205]

@@Ben_diez Yeah cause people are too sensitive nowadays. This is the effect of feminism destroying our society.

[@davevannatta985]

That is Martin Scorsese in the back seat. He was also in the black shirt the first time we see Betsy

[@mattp.3949]

The personal officer at the taxi depot at 3:15 who interviews Travis (Robert DeNero) for the taxi driver job is played by the late great Joe Spinell (1936-1989) who played many New York inner city heavy types through his own career.

[@petercofrancesco9812]

This movie is an insight into the mind of people who go on shooting sprees. There is a desire in all of us to loved, to accomplish something meaningful and to be recognized. These desires for someone who is a little off mentally can easily become twisted. I don't view the language or violence as a negative. Most movies today are overly sanitized so as not offend. True art is unapologetic.

[@HkFinn83]

Yeh it’s an amazing thing that when this film came out and for years after we didn’t even know WHAT he was, he was just so well portrayed he was real. Now we have a name for him; a shooter, incel, autistic, etc etc

[@essaywhu]

There’s one thing you are wrong about at the end. He is not economically disadvantaged at all. He said he is making 3-400 a week and I would be surprised if his rent for his room wasn’t somewhere between $80 to $120 a month for that shitty room. Maybe even lower. He is pulling at least ten times his rent just driving a cab.

[@JedHead77]

“You reacting to me?” 🚕

[@DylansPen]

This came out back when we'd go to the drive-in to see movies. Today's generation you are missing out on the drive-in scene, very visceral.

[@jdolan74]

The pandemic actually has kinda brought the drive-in BACK! lol

[@StevenRice]

Drive-ins never went away. Back east where I am from there are two drive-ins that have been THRIVING - one shows new movies and all (Becky's) and the other (Mahoning) is kind of the art-house horror house drive-in, Joe Bob Briggs had an event there last month and all. Drive-Ins still rule.

[@DylansPen]

@@StevenRice The majority are gone and it's too bad. Glad there are some still around, there used to be multiplex drive-ins like there are multi-plex walk-in theaters.

[@StevenRice]

@@DylansPen beckys has two separate screens which is fun, usually a family friendly screen and a mature screen. It’s awesome, I miss it now that I’m out west

[@styot]

King of Comedy, another of Scorsese's older movies, is far more similar to Joker, it's pretty close to a remake just set in the DC world. 😂 But I get the Taxi Driver comparisons as well.

[@jaywoolston2851]

I'm not sure if anyone has mentioned it, but the woman working in the porno theater was De Niro's wife, Diahnne Abbott.

[@karlmoles6530]

I was a cab driver for a long time, we definitely see some shit. I had to fight an abusive crackhead once.

[@ElliotNesterman]

Another important film of the era is 1969's _Midnight Cowboy._ Directed by John Schlesinger, it stars Dustin Hoffman and John Voight, and won three Oscars: Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Picture. It also has a Grammy winning score by John Barry, and a Grammy winning song "Everybody's Talkin'".

[@benntura]

I agree.

[@fredrm6023]

I’m walking here 🚶‍♂️ I’m walking here !

[@danwood4171]

As a young man I had no ideas about movies in general and had never heard of Midnight Cowboy. I saw it on TV one evening, pre-cable, pre-internet, and at the end of it I thought to myself this should've won a best picture award. Little did I know.

[@cjmacq-vg8um]

"midnight cowboy" was the ONLY x-rated movie to win an oscar. now, you can watch the film almost unedited, in its entirity right on broadcast tv. that's where i first saw it and fell in love with it.

[@sntxrrr]

Interesting how Taxi Driver, Falling Down and Joker are all about a generation apart.

[@BRNRDNCK]

Falling Down is a stupid movie that shouldn’t be in the same sentence as Taxi Driver

[@indridcold3762]

I loved the language back then. We should use it more today.

[@thamnosma]

The language is real street language not controlled woke language. It hasn’t changed on the ground.

[@dibsdibs3495]

It’s a bit exaggerated to say that imo but yeah movies do tend to make big deals about more tame words as well.

[@kevinfrost7180]

​@@dibsdibs3495in my experience it is the typical language I hear every day at work

[@dibsdibs3495]

@@kevinfrost7180 yeah I’ve heard groups talk like that but it honestly wasn’t exclusively based on whether they were poor or rich.

[@zeltzamer4010]

What does this even mean.

[@hoggers7572]

Funny thing is the people that cry about woke and cancel culture all day everyday just cried until Tenacious D was cancelled

[@FadeToBlack888]

Finallyyy you're taking a break from all of that trash tv to watch 'REAL CINEMA' as Mr Scorsese would say ;)

[@lawrenceallen8096]

Yes, that was a cameo of director Martin Scorsese: the cab passenger who was following his wife.

[@carlossaraiva8213]

And it happened only because the actor who had been hired for the role never showed up at the day of filmming.

[@sebswede9005]

@@carlossaraiva8213 sorry, My bad

[@frankrossi6972]

Many people want to dismiss films like this and "Falling Down" and "Joker," as toxic-masculinity, angry-white-guy movies and attribute that anger to some sort of rage over changing demographics in the U.S. or feminism, but it's deeper than that. You don't need to be a bigot or a chauvinist to be unable to pinpoint why your life feels empty and you're angry about injustices that you see every day. The men in these movies have different motivations---loneliness, frustration over a divorce, alienation---that go beyond race and politics. They grew up consuming mass media that told them that they won't be happy unless they have this and that----cars, a family, money, etc. --- and when expectations fall short, they cannot express themselves/seek help/reach out to anyone/deal with reality. My advice to parents: Stop telling your kids they're "special" and are "going to change the world." Most people don't change the world, and that's OK if you're a good person. Kids need to be told that it's more important to be a good person. like Travis, than a great or famous one, like the senator.

[@dmb70]

It's always interesting to see how young people react to the language & violence of these 70's movies. The other Scorsese movie that is a major influence on Joker is 1982's King of Comedy staring DeNiro & Jerry Lewis, it's another must watch.

[@jeffreynolin9339]

The King of Comedy was a great movie and perhaps even more of an influence.

Excellent movie.

[@DerDrecksack87]

The ending is the fewer dream of a dying man, many think he died on the couch in the end and imagined the rest while bleeding out.

[@highstimulation2497]

fewer??????????

[@davidgagnon7806]

The guy who wanted to kill his wife with a 44 Magnum pistol WAS Scorsese. The guy who was supposed to play that part didn't show up that day.

[@ericpederson3105]

Go out amongst the people, the real workaday people and you'll still hear all the same language still being spoken.

What I really like about Scorssess, and this movie is a great example, is that he didn't romantice violence. Violence is cruel, scary, crazy, awkard and it hurts. And you can see that in scorssesse movies very, very well.

[@k.t.5405]

min 26:40 funny, Foster's hair in this particular shot looks kind of like the Princess Leia do from Star Wars. Jodie Foster actually DID audition for George Lucas around this time (1975-76) for the role of Princess Leia (striking resemblance to a young Mark Hamill) on Scorsese and 20th Century Fox's urging. She made the shortlist along with Fischer and Amy Irving, but Lucas wanted NEW faces, hence Carrie Fischer... Jodie Foster would have been SPECTACULAR in Star Wars.

[@kidgforce1]

So Travs is Han Solo, the guy who shoots first

[@k.t.5405]

@@kidgforce1 kaboom tishhhhhhh

[@thomasknash]

Ok first comment: reminder how violent & crime ridden New York City (and America) was at that time. In a span of 10 years, from 1966 to 1976 (the year this movie was released) NYC saw the number of murders go up from 654 in 1966 to 1,622 in 1976. The US itself saw murders go up in just 5 years from 16,000 in 1970 to 20,510 in 1975. By comparison in 2020 (after a 151 additional murder spike for 2019) NYC still only had 462 murders (that’s 1,160 less murders than 1976). The US, even after a 25% homicide spike last year has a murder rate 25%-30% less than they had in the 70s. On top of all that, NYC was a city completely falling apart. It lost a million resident from 1970 to 1980 because it was so dysfunctional they fled the city. The city went bankrupt, had a garbage strike, black & brown outs, and a number of riots (including the infamous 1977 one). Prostitution, street crime, gangs, mugging, drugs, etc. we’re everywhere. The city was so crime ridden & underfunded NYPD released a pamphlet entitled “Fear City” warning tourist to stay away. I bring this up because this is the City & world Travis is living in and feeling pressure from. It plays a big part in both Travis’s motivation & why the film was part of the zeitgeist of the time (and why JOKER had to be set back then).

[@dan-mv7hk]

And in 1976-77, the Son of Sam killer was walking in the streets of the City..

[@Weaseldog2001]

Peter Boyle was in this film, and is in 'Young Frankenstein'. You might remember him from ' Everyone Lives Ramon'.

[@RedEdgedSavage]

The song " Red Angle Dragnet " by The Clash is about this movie..its a good song

[@golf5739]

"You talkin' to me?" All time favorite line

[@dr.burtgummerfan439]

I also like when he says women are "like a union" 🤣

[@stefanconradsson]

Big shout out to Paul Schrader, who wrote this, he is an unhinged genius who should write more scripts. Cheers 🍺

[@nosyrosie6947]

Taxi Driver has two of the greatest cameo scene's in a movie. Martin Scorsese stalking his wife, and Easy Andy as the gun dealer.

[@Silly81]

Speaking of Easy Andy or the guy portraying him, he told the story of a person who ODed and someone had to use a syringe with a long needle and slam it into their heart and the person came to instantly. Quentin Tarantino borrowed (or stole) the story and used it in his movie, you can probably guess what movie it is.

[@jksgameshelf3378]

So many great, gritty films came out of the '70's. You should watch "Network" (one of my top ten favorite films of all time), "Deliverance", "Chinatown", "The French Connection", and another of my all time favorites is "Marathon Man" with Dustin Hoffman, Roy Scheider, and Sir Laurence Olivier. It's a long list from that decade. Some of the greatest films ever made.

[@benntura]

I'd like to add Dog Day Afternoon starring Al Pacino.

[@jksgameshelf3378]

@@benntura - oh, absolutely. Fantastic film.

[@cesarnarro6013]

Yes so true ! I always wondered why films changed so much in the 80's ( also music )

[@craigplatel813]

5 easy pieces

[@virtualsnake1994]

i like to think he died and the ending is his dream of how his life ended up. in peace, adored and admired, with the girl he wanted... even the way betsy appears in the cab is very dreamlike.

[@imjonathan6745]

Sadly its not

[@chrisdixon5193]

Loved your reaction! But it was kind of condescending when you said we just don't talk like that anymore because we know better.

[@tamaravujacic]

Same hate that part.

[@sebswede9005]

Taxi Driver: "You're reacting to me?"

[@KazzyCreates]

That's good!

[@whysoserious652]

Kazzy: oh its palantine not palpatine, hahaha. Palps: its treason then😂😁😅😃

[@P.HATHCOX]

Now I'm always going to think of Kazzy saying Palpatine when I watch this movie 😆

[@davidgagnon7806]

They still use that language in Tarantino films, don't they?

[@kwadwotuffour5529]

Wow, Kazzy. I just came across you for the very first time today. I have to say I am SO enjoying your reactions, even though, I haven't even watched any of the movies or shows you have reacted to. I came across your 'taxi driver's reaction. That was the first time I've enjoyed a reaction that much over something I haven't seen or watched, lol. I could actually fall asleep listening to you. You have a whole different style. So calm, professional, relaxing.

[@KazzyCreates]

Welcome aboard! Thank you so much! I'm here to be your ASMR Movie Reactor! Ahahaha. I hope you enjoy all of my reactions. 🙏💛

[@kwadwotuffour5529]

@@KazzyCreates yea, that's one of the things you're style made me think of. Like mr. Roger's or one of those people presenting a show over tv to an audience. Also, I thought of like someone conducting a session of something(anything; yoga, a book club, support group, etc.).

[@stynershiner1854]

Just admit, you're in love with her.

[@kwadwotuffour5529]

@@stynershiner1854 haha, I probably am a little in love with her.

[@brads2362]

The ending is open for interpretation. Note the strange look at his mirror at the very end. To me, that does not indicate wellness. I suspect that if the movie were to follow Travis longer, Betsy’s head would end up in the trunk of his cab.

[@markdodson6453]

I agree. I've always found the ending terrifying, as if Schrader is saying something about the [American?] impulse to willfully re-frame sociopathic violence as heroic virtue. The idea that Travis has exorcised his demons is willful delusion.

[@Joe-hh8gd]

That was further punctuated by the musical sting during that shot.

[@carlossaraiva8213]

Notice that final shot was in fact filmed in reserve then played end to finish to create an unsettling effect. Sadly the ending of this movie is often misunderstood, expecially by people of right winger political inclinations, something that has horrified Scorsese and Shraeder to this day.

[@Joe-hh8gd]

@@carlossaraiva8213 When I saw Taxi Driver theatrically, I didn't really get the ending, Thought it stretched reality. But today of course...a different matter.

[@mrcrhartman]

The screenwriter told Martin Scorcese that Travis died some violent death within a year of this story, lol.

[@madmark1957]

Although he never says it all the clues are there that Travis was in the Vietnam war. Notice he only started thinking about killing Palantine after Palantine delivers a speech saying " Vietnam we were all there". Also the language was not forrible, ut was how people talked ina time when it wasn't fashionable to be offended.

[@beezoofer]

"Shocking to hear. We know better now." It's representative of how people talk. Interestingly I always see this remark, but some people seem to get a pass. A modern day rap song could say the worst about any number of demographics, promoting mistreatment of women, and be culturally destructive, and it gets heralded as art and you bob your head to it.

[@johnclaeys9514]

At the very end in the taxi, Travis “looks at his own eyeballs in the mirror” with a disturbing dissonant reverse musical sting in the background, and sees that the violence is still inside of him and could and probably will resurface.

[@piyushchatterjee1576]

I cry whenever I see's it ,because the way Robert Deniro acted ,the sadness ,frustrated,madness, emotional all the expression s u can see on his face, that's magnificent.

[@TTM9691]

As soon as you noticed Paul Schrader's name in the credits, I knew I was in good hands! :D Great reaction, Kazzy. I know this has been on your Patreon for a while, and that you just did a live premiere, so I won't add anything that's already been said other than to say fantastic reaction and edit! You include little bits and scenes that NO ONE does! Thank you so much for editing this down and sharing this with us!

[@kdizzle901]

Most people don’t even know who Paul Schroeder is lol which is sad

[@TTM9691]

@@kdizzle901 Schrader, not Schroeder, lol. Most people don't take note of the writers, not just Schrader, that's why it was so cool that she did! To be fair, although there are famous screenwriters I know (Robert Towne, Frances Marion, Paddy Chayefsky, Anita Loos, Buck Henry, etc), there are lots of my favorite movies that I can't tell you who wrote the script. (or who is credited with it, since that's a whole other thing)

[@kdizzle901]

@@TTM9691 I typed Schrader my phone atucorrects weird shit…..there’s so many great writers from the 70s…Frank Pierson is another one

[@TTM9691]

@@kdizzle901 Ah, sorry, of course. Autocorrect sucks! It's not just your phone. So annoying!

[@kdizzle901]

@@TTM9691 it autocorrects the weirdest words

[@ElliotNesterman]

Speaking of _Young Frankenstein,_ Peter Boyle, who plays Wizard here, plays the creature in _Young Frankenstein._

[@hannahpumpkins4359]

I was gonna make espresso!

[@ElliotNesterman]

Speaking of Gene Hackman, _The French Connection_ is a thriller that ought to be on everyone's list. It's got all the things that make for a great reaction: cops, criminals, shootouts, a spectacular car chase, and Hackman's Oscar-winning performance.

[@Jared_Wignall]

That was defiantly Scorsese in the taxi with De Niro. He was in the first scene we saw Cybil Shepard in as well at the beginning and only did the scene as the guy who is in the taxi when the original guy didn’t show up. This is a defiant masterpiece.

[@deeem2628]

Omg a cut from the movie Belly at 8:59!! I absolutely love that you did that lol. Props to the editing!

[@williamhicks7736]

I’m late to your reaction …. Wonder if you’ve watched this film since…. The ending is interpretive…. Is Travis really a hero? Was Iris maybe abused by her parents, which could be the reason she was in NY? Did Travis actually deliver Iris to a worse fate? Also, the final scene with Cybal Shephard’s character. Is that real or just Travis’ imagination?

[@henrytjernlund]

Been a looooong time since I've seen this movie. Thanks.

[@bobbobberson5897]

My interpretation to the ending is... He's dead, and his afterlife is just what he's familiar with

[@rodentnolastname6612]

"King Of Comedy" (1982) also inspired "Joker". Very underrated film.

[@juandesalgado]

Script by Paul Schrader. Check "Affliction" (1997) for more.

[@xbox0615]

Man the 70s is like the wild west

[@Corn_Pone_Flicks]

Oh, there are still people who talk like that...most movies just don't have the guts to show it for fear that the film itself will be accused of promoting those attitudes, rather than just portraying those kinds of characters accurately. Tarantino at least has gone on record saying that he feel he doesn't have the right to be dishonest about how people speak in those situations. Eastwood's Gran Turino is a more recent film you should check out.

[@kidgforce1]

family friendly cinema killed realistic cinema

[@gryphon9507]

In the seventies films were very different, the rating system was new and producers pushed things. They did anything and everything. A main character, like Travis, isn't even a hero or even an anti-hero just a guy who's having his story told. They can even die for no reason at the end. By the eighties the studios started to self censor the stories started to go into formula even though some of the best movies happened in the eighties. By the nineties the new rating system was in, no longer G PG R X but G PG PG13 R NC-17 X. Before a lot of stuff that used to get a PG, like certain types of cussing or even real scary things could only be seen in PG-13. PG-13 became then the benchmark for profit as it lets older kids and adults in, just edgy enough to get a large cross section of the populous in the seats and things got very formulaic. Edgy flicks like Taxi Driver with an R ratings which are unique an well made might not even be made due to the fact you can't show it to kids, it might have been cut to hell to get the PG-13 rating just to try and get more money, which usually doesn't pan out. That why I love The Joker, it had an almost Taxi Driver kind of feel, dark, edgy, and the main character was not a hero.

[@lawrenceallen8096]

Financially Disadvantaged? That has nothing to do with any of the films: Taxi Driver, Joker, Falling Down. Actually, Travis had cash...all he did was work. It is about social rejection more than money...if money has anything to do with it at all.

[@Saturnia2014]

Poverty and constantly working, having no time to yourself, doesn't help. Also, being "financially disadvantaged" results in societal rejection, so Travis having "cash" doesn't mean anything, the dude clearly still lived in poverty. Ever see how most poor or homeless people are treated? It's not good. Poverty, mental illness and PTSD are taboos in most cultures, not having enough money to seek help makes it worse, and then of course the worse you are mentally the more society rejects you. Money definitely has a lot to do with it.

[@lawrenceallen8096]

​@@Saturnia2014 My life experience says that is total nonsense. And I've lived and worked where there was REAL poverty: China for 20 years as a business executive, starting in the 1980s. Your want to talk impoverished? I spent plenty of time with folks in the countryside. Case in point: sisters who couldn't go out together on wash day because they have only 2 dresses between them and have to wash one at a time. If you tried to give that family money you would insult and offend them. The would NEVER take charity. Years later the girls got educated, went on to get good careers. They raised themselves up. Although the girls have money, Dad & Mom still lived in the same village and house. FAMILY, COMMUNITY, FAITH, BELONGING and SOCIAL ACCEPTANCE is what is truly valuable and what brings happiness and a sound mind and heart. And those girls have fond memories of their childhood too! Now, if you are talking film, evil demented villains always tend to be RICH! Every Bond Villain, for example. Heath Ledger's Joker burned money by the mountain size. Come to think of it, Joaquin Phoenix's Joker is the only villain I can think of who was working class. And it is true in real life too: Case in point George Soros. The guy is evil as hell, but worth billions. In fact, all the villains in our lives today are rich: the head of BLM (now worth millions), the D.C. politician's who are bankrupting us while lining their pockets, big tech billionaire stealing our 1st Amendment rights to curry favor with regulators they own. A working class guy NEVER screwed me as much as the so-called self-appointed "Elites" have. And boy are they demented too! Babbling Nancy Pelosi: Marie Antoinette $24/pint ice cream from her $24,000 fridge. Crazy Bernie. Demented Joe. Etc. These psychos are destroying our country before our eyes! And they are all plenty rich!

[@johnLennon255]

@@Saturnia2014 Travis had money to spare

[@Saturnia2014]

@@lawrenceallen8096 From your experience, so anecdotal evidence of two girls you met in China. Ok? And what about the others who live in the same type of poverty but simply cannot achieve the same goals as the two girls you mentioned? Is it because they didn't have enough bootstraps? Kudos to the two girls if they were able to go accomplish what they did, but you don't seem to realize that's just one case out of millions of people who live in poverty. What about the people in poverty who are too busy working to go to school, or they're handicapped either physically or are suffering from untreated mental illness, which qualifies as a handicap? You said the girls had parents? What if someone in poverty doesn't have any sort of support such as family and parents, then what? Again, you take one example that you saw and you think that applies to everyone in poverty? That everyone else can do the same as those two girls? Because no, that's not always the case. You also say all of this as if there isn't the same sort of poverty in the US right now, especially in the rust and coal belt; there's poverty on par to what you described in almost every region of the US, whether it be Red or Blue state. Don't pretend that poverty doesn't bring societal rejection, because it does. Travis' character (2019 Joker) were both victims of that, even if one of them turned out to be bad. And comparing Ledger's Joker to Phoenix's joker is apples and oranges. Also, you were a business executive and yet you're complaining about how the elite are destroying the US? You're literaly part of the system that has caused most of the problems around the world, you really don't have room to talk about rich business people destroying the world when you've been exclusively part of that system that keeps people in poverty. You've only seen poverty, you haven't experienced it; and judging by how you talk, you really don't care that there is poverty in this world.

[@Saturnia2014]

@@johnLennon255 Ok? Travis was still living in squalor in a rathole apartment and not because he chose to. He was still poor as hell.

[@davisworth5114]

Travis is a disturbed Vietnam veteran, a class of young men who were scapegoated and shamed by the American people. These veterans were later noted as going on rescue missions to help vulnerable, abused people, to whom they can easily relate. I spent years in the church volunteering to help mentally ill, homeless people. Good reactions, this was a time in America where the nations' wounds were festering and drugs and "sexual freedom" were beginning to cause a spiral down into frustration and violence, this film and the "Dirty Harry" movies were addressing similar themes of tarnished values and lack of social respect for authority, all occasioned by Vietnam and Watergate.

[@nonplayerzealot4]

My keyboard died on me a week ago, so it was a pain to point and click every character w/ the comp's internal KB, but now that I have a new KB, one thing I forgot to mention was the sad juxtaposition of this movie and Travis Bickle as a character w/ John Lennon and Mark Chapman, the slug who killed him. Both of them had seen this movie 4-5x and Chapman was obsessed with it. Not only that, but John Hinckley, who shot Ronald Reagan in 81, was also obsessed with this movie and was stalking and harassing Jodie Foster at her university. Hinckley probably would've killed her if he had actually encountered her. They found a hit list of his w/ a bunch of famous people including Jimmy Carter, who was president in the late 70s. He apparently moved onto Reagan as far as I know because he was about 2 months into office at the time he decided to do it. They let Hinckley out for visits with his parents. Iirc, they did agree that he was criminally insane at the time of the act. Sort of coincidentally, one of Lennon's favorite drinks was the Brandy Alexander which is cognac (which is just "plain" brandy as opposed to fruit brandy=peach, apricot, plum,etc), creme de cacao (choc syrup) and cream (milk can be used as a ghetto version). Lennon enjoyed them because he was also fond of the milkshakes he got in NYC.

[@germancito2501]

what a piece of art

[@Nay-kp6uu]

It's cool the top two winners of the poll both have Peter Boyle in it.

[@TTM9691]

I thought the same thing! I think the most underrated scene in "Taxi Driver" is when De Niro goes to Boyle to ask for advice......and Boyle tries to help, but ultimately has no answers. Also, his (and Susan Sarandon's) first movie, "Joe" is one of the more underrated (or overlooked) movies of the '70s; that was a cultural phenomenon the summer it was released, and unfortunately, still very pertinent to this day.

[@mikenadanada7430]

Oh my ... Your in the deep & dark end of the pool with this one lol.. Can't wait to see this reaction , please tell me you're not totally traumatized. And Oh btw , are you talking to me lol...

[@highstimulation2497]

I wonder how a film like this could traumatize a person. I mean, could it? my mother thought it would traumatize her, when I finally convinced her to see it, maybe 12 years ago, she found it quaint, like a period piece from the 70s, not NEARLY as visceral as she had always feared.

[@scottjo63]

6:07, well you may not have got Young Frankenstein, but you did get Young Frankenstein's creation. Actor, Peter Boyle here and as the Young Frankenstein's monster.

[@NecropsY1]

Falling Down is amazing - Its Douglas fav movie he was in

[@MrSuperHappyPants]

I think the most important question is that of how much of the story is real and how much is Travis' delusion. Thank you for the video.

[@davevannatta985]

To prepare for this role,DeNiro actually drove a cab for several weeks

[@SaRENRampaiger]

Not to mention he even required a Taxi license for it as well.

[@winstonmarlowe5254]

To prepare for this role, DeNiro beat off in several adult movie theaters.

[@robertjewell9727]

My friend Dorothy's father did the music for this film. It was his last film and there's a dedication to him at the end of the credits. And speaking of JOKER, TAXI DRIVER inspires it much, but so does to a great deal Scorsese's film THE KING OF COMEDY also with DeNiro playing a want-to-be deluded comic. So check that film out when you can. My feelings about Travis being a hero at the end is part of the delusion society abd media puts on psychopaths to make a name for themselves in some iconic way because he's not a hero, but a deranged individual who in the end gets a pat on the back. Yes, he saves Iris, but it's a secondary alternative to not having been able to assassinate a presidential candidate and show up Betsy so his madness gets no release. He's still crazy, but he gets a reprieve because the press calls him a hero.

[@Ghost-vg6iq]

Funny how you call him a psychopath while the studies show that most of the times psychopaths are likely to be politicians or ceos of big corps. Travis is mentally ill but i'm sure is not a psychopath.

[@houssemabbassi9063]

travis was still unsstable as ever,the little mirror check at the end is the sign of that..still a bomb ticking

[@spiderfingers86]

You would recognize the bald man from the movie 'Young Frankenstein' as the creation

[@ericsierra-franco7802]

That is Scorsese in the back of the taxi.

[@MildSatire]

Don’t want to be rude but you completely misunderstood the ending. It’s not happy. He plays it off as a cool guy for Betsy then that vicious psychotic look in the rear view mirror tells us he hasn’t changed - the media’s glorification of his violence has only made him worse.

[@michaelwalsh1035]

It's a great film with an ambivalent message. Is Travis unstable or is the society so cracked that you can't know who is insane? The 70s were dominated by writers like Norman Mailer and those influenced by the Beats , like Ken Kesey, who believed it was the so called normal people who were insane. So ,Travis takes on attributes of both insanity and middle class normality. Also, you see mainstream politics, as represented by Palatine, are complete hypocrisy and lies. Someone like Betsy is caught up in the same sort of hypocrisy. Earlier she sees Travis as a pervert and completely unhinged.Later, Betsy does a complete 360 when the media projects Travis as a hero. Also, it is implied that Travis is a Vet, highly likely a Marine with Vietnam service, and likely suffering from post traumatic stress, which was often swept under the rug in returning Vietnam vets. So, it is not at all clear that Travis is to be judged as the psychotic. Also, there is no way that a film could be made about 1970s street life without showing all it's aspects, including the language. The film would have zero artistic or intellectual integrity if all of that was whitewashed away.

[@highstimulation2497]

I'd imagine society is ALWAYS so cracked that anyone could be insane. People seem to not wish to think that, not wish to admit, to pretend that there is order, and to wit, there IS order. But anyone can be insane, and people are, and likely always have been, even if this wasn't in mass-consciousness and many would prefer to keep it out of mass-consciousness. I'd venture to guess that there desire to not acknowledge it in the first place... is one of the reasons why when someone does snap, it's violent. if they'd simply been taught about feelings and how to acknowledge them and taught that feelings are okay, especially feelings that do not conform to "gender roles," namely, that women can in fact be angry, desirous, sexual, like men are 'expected' to be, and that man can in fact cry, be afraid, and want connection, etc.... there would be less problems in the world if gender roles and conformity didn't insist otherwise.

[@johnpittsii7524]

Hey Kazzy hope you have an great and awesome day 😀. Much ❤ as always 😊

[@st0n3p0ny]

Did you notice Frankenstein's monster from Young Frankenstein is in this movie? The guy at the table telling the BS story about the back seat hookup.

[@marclewis5505]

34:44 I love Falling Down I saw it as a kid Kazzy.

[@kidgforce1]

Falling Down is one of my favourite movies

8:35 I have watched this film numerous times and this is the first time I noticed Cybill Shepherd is seated spread-legged wearing a skirt in a no lady fashion. 😂

[@gabrielramirez-xy9ft]

Love your reactions, you are amazing! ❤️

[@dr.burtgummerfan439]

Iris: "I don't know who's weirder, me or you." Me: "Uh, he is." Fun fact: Cybill Shepherd's dress in the coffee shop scene is the same pattern as the upholstery in the Partridge Family's bus.

[@cjmacq-vg8um]

... you know they killed that bus just make shepherd's dress. it was horrible. there was grease, oil and gasoline everywhere! actually, that's an interesting observation. i never noticed that before.

[@davidgagnon7806]

The song playing during American Bandstand is Jackson Browne's "Late For The Sky." The loneliest song for the loneliest scene.

[@chrislawson1988]

Yeah I noticed the Palpatine thing too lol. Funny lol

[@aceldamia9114]

This movie doesn't have any words said that are not fine to say now. Grow up.

[@phendranadrift740]

Finally!!!!!! Love you

[@jefffiore7869]

One of my favorite Martin Scorsese movies!!

[@wsn0009]

Great movie and character study! Certainly has some resemblances to Joker (2019).

[@jalen2287]

Of course it has. Todd Phillips just copied Taxi Driver and The King of Comedy.

[@MKF30]

@Francis Jalen Tiueco Incorrect. Joker didn't copy Taxi Driver, in *some* ways, Joker was inspired at best but otherwise based off the comic story three jokers as it showed Joker being 3 different people yet could be anyone who had a really bad day. But inspired doesn't mean copied. Plus, Joker is a character that existed before both of those movies. Also, Arthur Fleck has an entirely different backstory to Travis not remotely close. All Travis is literally is a copy of Rambo without morals, plus Joker is the better movie to Taxi Driver and made more money 💰 too. By the logic of "Joker is just like taxi driver" then So would Falling Down with Michael Douglas. But just a similar concept. Also, Taxi Driver just copied real life person named Arthur Bremer who served 35 years for trying to assassinate politician George Wallace as he too was strange and a loner with issues. I see more similarities with taxi driver's Travis and Brener than Joker to Taxi Driver. Joker is based off the comics as he can be anyone.

[@jalen2287]

@@MKF30 Yeah, Phillips did say Joker was inspired. However, people who've seen the movies who aren't blind knows that. And the Joker is just loosely based off of a fraction of the comics unofficial origins. You sure you read the comics? Everyone in the DC community agreed that the Joker movie was not based on a comic book. And it doesn't even matter if Taxi Driver was loosely based off of a real event. Paul Schrader literally wrote the entire screenplay in fifteen days. And Rambo? Really? Both are completely different story structure and thematic wise. Lol, Joker is just a miniscule attempt of Todd Phillips trying to be an artistic director. All he could talk about in the Director's roundtable is Joker. If money is your argument, then that means The Fast and the Furious 7 is better than Forrest Gump? What a horrible argument. Anyone who isn't blind like you can see that Joker is just a copycat of Taxi Driver and The King of Comedy. Of course if you were asked of why your movie resembles another movie, you'd say it was "inspired" lol.

[@MKF30]

@@jalen2287 Everything technically is "inspired" by something but that's very different than "copying" flat out lol. Yes I'm pretty sure since I own over 400 books in bins. You sure you read comics? Yeah but like I said, it's base off a character from the comics hence Joker. You sure you know who the Joker is? He's not some clown who happens to loses it. That's the concept of the joker if you've ever read "The Killing Joke" you'd know that story has a lot of in common with this movie "All it takes is one bad day" quite famous among comic readers. Yes, and also to those not blind know that Taxi Driver took inspiration from the real case I spoke about which Martin Scorcese also admitted himself. If you'd like I can link you the interview. I used Rambo as far as an evil, warped version of a vet if you read my whole post. Not everyone just some people, only some DC fans felt that way while others did feel it was clearly based off elements of various books, a lot of those DC fans most likely are normies I've noticed. Like I've seen comments saying "it's not like Mark Hammill's Joker" as if he has a copyright on what the character is exclusively. This was an origin Story so Joker could be anyone, he's also different people in different movies and the multiverse. A concept those DC fans often don't understand, they judge by one version they saw growing up not the many in books and the multiverse of movies. I never said money is everything but for a "copy of a movie" as you say, it wouldn't have done not just well but only breaking a billion WITHOUT China mind you, hardly terrible. To say it's a copy of something that ironically copied something in it's own right is a terrible and hypocritical argument. I just pointed it out because often ignorant people make that comparison without realizing TD is a copy of a real life story, Martin even admitted this... lol you can hate on phillips all you want, doesn't change the fact that Joker was a great movie. But I agree with you on one thing money isn't always better film, for example most agree that TDK and Joker are better than Endgame when it comes to top quality comic book films. I mean for as praised as the MCU is, none of them have two oscars worthy of noting that DC has with two different actors portraying Joker. So there's that too. Nope, Joker is nothing like Taxi Driver, Taxi Driver is literally a copy of that real case however. The only thing they have in common is a guy falling down a dark path but the reasoning is entirely different and there's like 100 movies with this concept. One would have to be blind to not see it and I can point out the various differences with the two from Joker having a mental illness, abused as a kid and lied to his entire life, where Travis is a screwed up, warped vet who tries to kill a politician. Because that totally sounds the same...not. Hardly a copy. By your logic Falling Down would also be a "Taxi Driver copy" lmao..

[@jalen2287]

@@MKF30 agree to disagree. This argumentation will just lead to nowhere.

[@JW666]

It's not only Taxi Driver, but also another Scorsese/DeNiro movie King of Comedy was also an influence to Joker.

[@spiderfingers86]

The scene when he's talking to himself in the mirror was improvised

[@joevaldez6457]

Fantastic video, Kazzy. _Taxi Driver_ is one of my three favorite films of all time. Your observations were so spot-on. It is shocking to hear how people of color or women were often talked about (by white men) in the 1970s but this was an anything goes era. The filmmakers were young and full of beans. Paul Schrader wrote the script when he was the same age and in the same head space as Travis Bickle, while the director Martin Scorsese and the producers Michael & Julia Phillips were in their early 30s. People that young are not trusted to make final decisions for something as big as a major studio release these days. We can see the results too.

[@kidgforce1]

my favourite movie too, besides Blue Velvet by David Lynch

[@tbirdUCW6ReAJ]

A lot of dark history behind this movie: the script was inspired by the guy who tried to kill George Wallace and then it got Hinckley Jr. to form an obsession with Jodie Foster which inspired him to try and assassinate President Reagan. The lawyer played the movie to the jury to convince them he was psychotic.

[@SebaVDP]

Are you talking to me!!🤪 great movie!!! Happy Friday Kazzy🌹🤗

[@dirtypink3197]

It's a crime watching this movie in daylight. It has full effect at 03:00 in the morning

[@williameckert1623]

That was Martin Scorsese in the back of the cab.

[@smittybenzo4693]

That was definitely Martin Scorsese with the dark beard in the cab.

[@norwegianblue2017]

My mom looked just like Cybil Shepherd when she was young.