Taxi Driver

Vietnam veteran Travis Bickle works overnight as a Manhattan cabdriver and writes about the city, his sleeplessness, and his disgust. Failed attempts at connection with campaign worker Betsy and his concern for teenage Iris feed an increasingly violent idea of purpose.

De Niro's guarded performance keeps need, vanity, grievance, and danger uneasily intertwined. Steam, rain, neon, slow motion, subjective street views, and Bernard Herrmann's divided score make the city feel filtered through Travis's unstable consciousness.