Very good but flawed

Rating: 7/10 (4 October 2008)

Great atmosphere and remarkable performances from DeNiro, Foster and even Albert Brooks but this film is sloppy with too many loose ends. Never really explained or expanded upon is the underlying friction between Travis and African Americans in the film...his suspicious, trance-like staredowns with black characters are never developed. The ending is completely out of place and unbelievable...Travis initiated the shootings...he never would have been hailed as a vigilante hero and in the real world would have been tried for murder. Deeply disturbed protagonist gets the girl in the end???? Come on. What's that all about. Also never fully explained is why does Palentine become the target of his lonely obsession with making a mark in this world? Travis had always expressed the desire to clean up the scum...and I understand the symbolic linking of a pimp with a politician, but the association is sloppy in the film because Travis always admired Palantine even after his disaster date with Betsy. There was never a turning point or event for him where the candidate became the target of his social dissatisfaction. And then there's the subject of Travis' hair. I know it seems petty but it was very distracting seeing scenes that were obviously shot as soon as the shaved headed DeNiro's hair grew in barely enough to pass for continuity with the earlier scenes.
In all, I like this film. I think it's powerful and disturbing but it is not an icon or masterpiece. In its day, it was so groundbreaking that many of its flaws received a pass. 7out of 10