Ambiguous

Rating: 8/10 (28 September 2018)

I don't like violent or depressing films, but even I could see greatness in Taxi Driver. For example, it wouldn't have been as great without the music, which gave it a very noir feeling at times, without beating the noir idea to death. And some of the 'atmospheric' shots, like the taxi driving through steam billowing out of a manhole, were really excellent - but only because the music was appropriate. And the final scene, where we view Betsy symbolically fading into the darkness, was pure noir ending to me. 'Maybe next time, Baby, if you're good.' But speaking of that scene, I was confused. When shot-up Travis was leaning back on the couch, I looked closely, wondering 'Is he dying, or isn't he?' And incidentally I wondered why the policeman didn't shoot Travis, since he was holding a gun, but then maybe policemen weren't quite as trigger-happy in those days. When the movie picked up after the excellent crime scene street view zoom-out, showing Travis talking to his buddies, I thought 'Hey, what's going on here? Isn't he dead?' And then when Betsy (Cybill Shepard) shows up, and she acts like maybe she regrets rejecting Travis, I'm thinking, wait a minute, this is seriously not likely! So then I had to Google 'What's with the ending to Taxi Driver?', and find that some think it's Travis's dying dream sequence, while Scorsese says it shows that people viewed Travis as a hero for shooting gangsters. To me that would be his way of emphasizing how screwed up things were. And supposedly the final bit where Travis reacts to something in his rear view mirror suggests that he may flip out again. So which is it? Dead, or alive? I'm pretty sure the answer is 'both'. I think Scorsese was hedging his bets, very cleverly (and incidentally leaving open the possibility of a sequel). First, Travis could have been dying after the shootout, but it wasn't clear - which I think was intentional. Those who feel Travis should die in the gun battle he started can believe the ending is a dream sequence (especially since it plays out like a dream sequence), while those who like the idea of instant justice can believe it's not. Sometimes ambiguity is just what you need.