Taxi Driver

Taxi Driver is a 1976 American motion picture drama directed by Martin Scorsese.

Critical response

Taxi Driver was a financial success and was nominated for several Academy Awards and recieved honors at the Cannes Film Festival. In later years, the film was ranked #47 on the American Film Institute's list of "100 Years, 100 Movies", and #22 on its "100 Years, 100 Thrills". It is consistently in the top 50 on the Internet Movie Database's list of top 250 films, and has been selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry. Roger Ebert has added Taxi Driver to his list of "Great Movies."http://www.suntimes.com/ebert/greatmovies/taxi.html

Related Topics:
Academy Award - Cannes Film Festival - American Film Institute - Internet Movie Database - National Film Registry

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Some critics have argued Taxi Driver is perhaps the first film to address--however indirectly--the impact of the Vietnam War on soldiers who fought in the conflict. Most notably, Bickle appears to be suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorderhttp://www.lib.auburn.edu/socsci/docs/ptsd.html, a condition that was bought to major attention by the condition of some veterans of that conflict and later included in the DSM-III. More subtly, Bickle's spartan lifestyle and choice of poorly-paid, dead-end employment is evocative of the experiences of many war veterans suffering from this condition and the perception that mentally or physically disabled veterans are disowned and inadequately compensated by society or the government.

Related Topics:
Vietnam War - Post Traumatic Stress Disorder - DSM-III

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The film includes a subtle reference to military operations in the US. When Bickle determines to assassinate Senator Palantine, he cuts his hair into a mohawk. This detail was suggested by actor Victor Magnotta, a friend of Scorsese's who had a small role as a Secret Service agent, and who had served in Vietnam. Scorsese later noted that Magnotta had "talked about certain types of soldiers going into the jungle. They cut their hair in a certain way; looked like a mohawk ... and you knew that was a special situation, a commando kind of situation, and people gave them wide berths ... we thought it was a good idea."

Related Topics:
US - Mohawk - Secret Service - Jungle - Commando

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