There have been a lot of disturbing thrillers over the years that have left audiences in a state of shock long after the final credits roll. David Fincher’s Seven, Ari Aster’s Midsommar, and Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho are just some that come to mind. They’re movies that disturb us on a psychological level, getting deep inside our head to play havoc with our thoughts. Now, one of the most riveting of them all has found a new streaming home to once again traumatize viewers this October.
Released in 1976, Martin Scorsese’s Taxi Driver is perhaps one of the most disturbing psychological thrillers ever made. Trapping the audience inside the mind of an unstable anti-hero, the film presents viewers with an unflinching look at violence, isolation, and obsession. Robert De Niro gives one of his most memorable performances as Travis Bickle, Taxi Driver’s vigilante incel who’s crushed under the weight of loneliness. His desire for human connection drives him to the cliff of madness, and he doesn’t hesitate to jump headfirst into the abyss below.
Also starring Jodie Foster, Cybill Shepherd, Harvey Keitel, Peter Boyle, Leonard Harris and Albert Brooks, Taxi Driver was a box office sensation when it was released nearly 50 years ago. Produced for just $1.9 million, its box office take was a staggering $28.6 million. Not bad for an R-rated thriller by a still up-and-coming director at the time. While true cinephiles will already have this one in their physical media collection, for those that don’t, Taxi Driver was just added to Netflix if you want to relive its haunting realism all over again. Check out the synopsis below:
“Suffering from insomnia, disturbed loner Travis Bickle (De Niro) takes a job as a New York City cabbie, haunting the streets nightly, growing increasingly detached from reality as he dreams of cleaning up the filthy city. When Travis meets pretty campaign worker Betsy (Shepherd), he becomes obsessed with the idea of saving the world, first plotting to assassinate a presidential candidate, then directing his attentions toward rescuing 12-year-old prostitute Iris (Foster).”
‘Taxi Driver’ Is a “Brilliant Nightmare”
It comes as no surprise that Taxi Driver is Certified Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes with an 89% rating. It is, after all, one of the greatest movies ever made. Fans think so, too, as its audience score sits even higher at 93%. Revered today as an absolute classic, noted film critic Roger Ebert called Taxi Driver a “brilliant nightmare” in his review back in the day:
“Taxi Driver is a brilliant nightmare and like all nightmares it doesn’t tell us half of what we want to know. We’re not told where Travis comes from, what his specific problems are, whether his ugly scar came from Vietnam — because this isn’t a case study, but a portrait of some days in his life.”
Whether you’re in the mood for a gritty thriller, or just want to remind yourself how great a movie Taxi Driver really is, now is the perfect time to kick back and add it to your queue. It’s perhaps more relevant than ever these days, making it a timeless classic that’s worth revisiting on Netflix.