Prescient and depressing

Rating: 10/10 (10 March 2020)

It is strange to think that it has been 44 years since Taxi Driver's release. In comparison, Taxi Driver came out 37 years after Gone With the Wind and The Wizard of Oz. I think it's fair to say that Taxi Driver belongs on a short list of American films that are cultural touchstones-movies (like those two 1939 classics) that you must be familiar with to be culturally literate; although, Taxi Driver still seems astonishingly relevant and much more modern after 44 years than the 1939 pictures felt in 1976.
The theme of isolation especially resonates today. And the story's fable-like aspects give it a simple, timeless quality. The plaintive Bernard Herrmann score evokes a calmer, more innocent era. The neon and lighted marquees slide by in a blur or are reflected in multi-colored puddles. Steam rises from manhole covers like dragon's breath. Travis is an innocent, albeit a troubled one, and finds his city scary despite all the bright lights. In his mind he is on a Hero's Journey, beset with enemies all around, to rescue a maiden. Or something like that. The poor guy has some tangled ideas about women. And he has no allies to help him navigate this strange world. You feel very sorry for him. But, of course, he's very dangerous.
The historical relevance is well documented. Screenwriter Schrader drew inspiration from diaries of Arthur Bremer, who shot George Wallace in 1972. In 1981, John Hickley-an obsessive watcher of the film-tried to assassinate Ronald Reagan to impress Jody Foster. I find it interesting that all three men didn't really care who they killed. Bremer had also stalked Nixon, and Hickley, Carter. Travis didn't care either. He wasn't looking for fame like his real-life counterparts, though, he was just addled and isolated and enraged. But that's a type that's all too familiar today.
Considering the endless stories of mentally ill shooters that we listen to now, it appears that Taxi Driver predicted what was coming. I don't think the filmmakers were going for that; it was probably more historical when it was written-the Texas Tower spree killings occurred 10 years earlier as well as several assassinations and attempts. But as it was one of the first films to explore this type of character, it turned out to be prescient. And depressing. But that's what it is: a depressing work of art.