Taxi Driver: an offspring of the “noir” genre.

Taxi Driver, the movie written by Paul Schrader and directed by Martin Scorcese,proposes a personal and critical but realistic view of the post Vietnam war United-States. It reveals the important social instabilities of the big North-American urban centers through the odyssey of a schizophrenic young war veteran taxi driver in the sleaziest areas of New-York. The Big Apple is, in the eyes of this main character, Travis Bickle (Robert De Niro), depicted as a gigantic human dumping ground. It represents accordingly an anti-thesis to the famous “American Dream” and shows the permanent underlying violence of this society.

Although it was produced in 1976 and despite the fact that it doesn't includes all the classical features of a “film noir”, Taxi Driver can be considered as a good “modern offspring” of that specific film genre. Elements such as the score, by Bernard Herrmann, locations, lights and even the themes approached give the movie a dark and gloomy atmosphere which is so particular to this “French label”. Also the period during which this film has been produced (the beginning of the seventies) - a post-war (Vietnam war lost) and political disillusio

In fact these two periods seem, in termes of historical and sociological circumstances, relatively close. After the Second World War, the veterans coming back from Europe and Pacific rediscover their country in a general dismal climate. A feeling of disillusionment,due partly to the return to a peace time economy, is shared by the biggest part of the American middle-classes. Although the United States are ascendent after the war, the combination of the entrance in the nuclear era, of the MacCarthyism and of the starting Cold War keep the public opinion in a permanent state of anxiety. This summarizes the context in which the “film noir” grow, mirroring the post-war traumatism and answering the public's need for a more realistic view of the United-States.

First, one knows that the score is one of the most - if it isn't the most – important element to help to create the particular ambiance needed by a scene, but it is also useful to set the general atmosphere of a movie. Taxi Driver provides, through the help of Bernard Hermann, a high quality score which one could describe as heavy and threatening. It gives the movie a general tone that brings it close to the noir ambiance. The opening credits use already the dark musical theme which recurs often in Taxi Driver. As the movie opens one feel (even with closed eyes) that the topic is dark.

prostitute,from his pimp, Sport. It is through this Travis' truncated vision that the spectator discovers or rediscovers the sleaziest streets of the low New York. From the very beginning, with the close shot on his eyes cut to his view through the rainy windshield, one adopt his point of view that one keep nearly during the whole movie. This impression is still reinforced by Travis voice-over which comes back constantly.

Other genres than “noir” also inspired Scorcese to make his movie. One can off course talk about melodrama because it is often considered that “film noir” is part of the melodrama genre. One find also in the final shootout elements of horror film in the way which the violence is shown - very clear not implied at all. But the main “no-noir” inspiration comes without doubts from the western. The scenario of Taxi Driver is known to have been consciously influenced by The Searcher, a John Ford's movie which tells the story of a civil war veteran, social outcast who is obsessed by the rescuing of his niece. Travis collects some of the aspects of the western hero who is according the conventions of the genre a lonely character frequently and pathologically misunderstood by others and who becomes a “hero” as a result of his violent acts.

Some topics in this essay:
Taxi Driver, Travis Bickle, Paul Schrader, Taxi Diver, Sport Travis', John Ford's, World War, Cold War, Bernard Herrmann, De Niro, taxi driver, “film noir”, paul schrader, film genre, “film noir” genre, noir” genre, forties fifties, tone mood”, scorcese's movie, “american dream”, qualities tone mood”, “subtle qualities tone, qualities tone, taxi driver movie, notice taxi driver,