'Taxi Driver' and Today's Society

Paper Summary:

In the movie 'Taxi Driver', directed by Martin Scorsese and starring Robert DeNiro, many elements of contemporary society are examined. This paper discusses the decline of the character of Travis Bickle into psychosis. The major themes of the film such as loneliness, the taxi itself, racism, television, and violence are discussed and the actual cinematography and how the director chose to accentuate certain moments in the film using camera angles and lighting are examined. The purpose of this paper is to highlight each pertinent aspect of the film that led directly to the rapid and violent downfall of Travis Bickle, and to prove, quite specifically and unequivocally that Travis Bickle's eventual violent conclusion was a direct result of the unforgiving nature of both his torrid history in the United States, and of New York City as a culture of repressed anger and virulent undertones.

From the Paper:

"Primarily, it is important to discuss loneliness in relation of both Travis Bickle and the film as a whole in order to develop a relationship between the theme and Bickle's eventual decline into madness. First, from the opening scene, it is apparent that something is amiss with the character of Travis Bickle. By driving through the rain in his taxi, and by the windshield wipers failing to clear a good line of sight for him, the film begins to show how his character not only has a clouded view of the world that is perhaps a little more than skewed, it shows the isolation that he feels from this perspective. Further, Bickle lives alone in New York, has virtually no contacts other than his taxi driver colleagues, and is struggling to find a place of his own in an unfamiliar place and historical situation. His loneliness is further examined with his propensity to visit pornographic movie theaters. Not only does he use these movies as a crutch for his loneliness, he also is often seen drinking alone in the theater, an obvious clue that he is rapidly approaching desperate measures in his own sense of self."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Bliss, Michael. An Interview with Paul Schrader. Film Quarterly, 54(1), 2000.
• Braudy, Leo. The Sacraments of Genre: Coppola, DePalma, Scorsese. Film Quarterly, 39(3), 1986.
• Wexman, Virginia Wright. Cinema Journal, 20(1). 1980.

More papers on 'Taxi Driver' and Today's Society:

• Film Review # 24081 : "Taxi Driver"
• Essay # 143733 : "Geselischaft And The Affect Of Urban Life In Martin Scorsese’s Taxi Driver"
• Film Review # 52817 : "Taxi Driver"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: