Yeah, the city is just as big a character in TAXI DRIVER, one of my all time favorite films, as Travis Bickle. What is fascinating as a resident of the city is to compare New York City, circa 1974/1975 when the movie was filmed and released, to what it is today. It is like a galaxy far, far away a long, long time ago.
New York City, particularly Manhattan, is so gentrified today. Some of those areas where the film was shot are now populated by the super rich.
I really don't want to push off topic, but a friend of mine and I had a conversation about sex and violence yesterday. We came to the conclusion that most American's are far more willing to sit down and watch a movie with their family where people kill eachother, or kick ass. It really should be the other way though. Sex is natural, and everyone does it, its weird that people become uncomfortable watching movies with it in it.
We've found the base of peoples mild reactions to violence. This is probably nothing new to you people, but cartoons that children watch at age 7 have "NON STOP ACTION" as the commercials advertise. If you watch with a sceptic's eye, its apparent that this is backwards. We are telling children violence is okay, but heaven forbid they know what sex is! PG flicks like the Incredibles are filled with good guys beatin' up bad guys, but there isn't any sexual content. I think parents delay the topic until its completely necessary which is why teens are horndogs. Its not OKAY to have sex, so they do it. However, violence is perfectly fine.
Im sorry I've said so much off topic, but i want someone elses opinion on this.
I think that Travis is distant from the city (as mentioned earlier) but he sees it all through the glass window of his ride. It's like he's on a rollercoaster, strapped in for the ride but incapabled of doing anything (because his job is to drive.) Eventually all of the hate and aggresion pushes him over the top and he goes out seeking his own adventure in the city. That and him going semi-psychotic gives him a feeling of purity, and he kind of is a pure being. He goes to pornos, sure, but he isn't out pimping.
So does Scorsese use the city in Taxi Driver the same way as Schlesinger uses it in Midnight Cowboy? Both Travis and Joe Buck have come from other places to New York City. Travis looks on the bad, but then finds good (the Cybill Shepherd and Jodie Foster characters.) Joe Buck looks on the good and gets screwed, but eventually finds the good from within himself (he finds that his enemy Ratso is actually good too.) I believe the city is depicted much darker and nihilistic in Midnight Cowboy. Travis Bickle could be in the middle of a love affair in a forest somewhere and still want to kill, destroy, etc. His actual world is seen through his interior hatred and misunderstanding. Joe Buck's world is very internal too, yet he seems to have no problem interacting with people, at least until they all take advantage of him. Interesting ideas. Mine are in no way the truth; they're just mine.
"Naked Woman, Naked Man Where did you get that nice sun tan?"
Posts: 12874 | Location: Behind the Orange Curtain | Registered: 14 May 2004
The city represents everything he disgusts in life. It contains the prostitutes, drugs, crime, and all that.
Basically the point is that he is alone in amongst millions of people. He can't really connect to anyone despite there being people all around him. I think that's a big theme of the film and why he doesn't like the city too.
Maybe the impersonallness of it. The coldness. He makes a comment in his narration about everyone being cold and distant.
