Ebert said it was one of the greatest films he had ever seen and gave it four stars.
Gene Sisko (as transcribed) gave it a thumbs down; he is called a little prudish with this material, and Saturday Night Fever is called his favorite movie.
The thumbs-down review found interesting ground spoiled by a violent, unpleasant and unnecessary climax; Ebert answered that without the violent climax it would not be the same movie, and the two argued about it.
The dissenting critic is thought to have possibly backtracked, and a joke says the film could have ended in a disco.

Most Rewatchable Scene

No scene selected

In the discussion (20)

Approx. transcript time · 00:35:34Read transcript

Most Rewatchable Scene feels odd for this film, which is rewatchable because it is great and important rather than for one scene watched 120 times, so the segment becomes a run through the best scenes.
First up is Travis driving around and describing decrepit New York City at night; the drive is only about two minutes but grim.
Producer Michael Phillips is quoted that the whole West Side was bombed out with condemned buildings, Times Square was disgusting, and they did not know they were documenting the dying gasp of New York.
Travis asking Betsy out after going into the office is a really good scene that hinges on believing she might go out with him, which seems ridiculous given where the movie goes, though she kind of buys him.
Travis comes in with confidence and reads Betsy well only because he has been stalking her; a high shot of his hand passing over her desk, amid traditional coverage, makes the scene unsettling.
That overhead 'priest's view' shot returns when he buys the guns and in the long overhead pullback after the shootout, signalling something deeper, insane and spiritual in Travis.
The actor who played Palantine made only two movies and was a culture critic brought in because the filmmakers wanted someone who did not seem like an actor rather than a Hal Holbrook type; this prompts a joke about a critic getting pulled into a Scorsese movie.
In the Palantine cab ride the actor waits a beat to find the right politician response to Travis, and Travis knows he is being condescended to and blew it.
Scorsese as the crazy cab passenger is a fun, weird five minutes, not politically correct in 2021; it is judged to work because it feels honest and nothing about it is gratuitous.
Travis mastering his gun-and-knife routine shows weeks of De Niro's practice; it was filmed in one shot, ran too long in a rough cut and was cut in half around the rally scene, and the 'You talking to me' portion originally ran about 10 minutes, a smart edit followed by the name Marshall Lucas.
In the breakfast scene with Iris, her putting sugar on the jam and toast is the lasting detail, read as a callback to Travis pouring brandy and sugar on his cereal, as if they were souls meant for each other in a messed-up way.
The botched assassination is short but gripping because first-time viewers assume it will be the climax; the boom and dolly shots are impressive given how big the equipment was then.
When directing, he photo-boards all the coverage on an iPhone because a 30-minute TV show lacks time and money; as an actor he can bristle at storyboards and likes that Scorsese told actors to speak up if something did not work for them. — Bill Hader
A joke says the podcast is storyboarded over Zoom with pictures sent to the producer but not shared with the co-host.
The final shootout is really cool filmmaking: the X rating forced changes, some color was taken out to make it more palatable, and the wide overhead shot goes on for about two minutes.
The shootout has no music telling viewers it is an action scene; the wide shot down the hall as Travis finishes off Keitel's character feels like security-camera footage from someone trapped in the hallway.
A better example is Travis first shooting Keitel's character, seen from the point of view of someone on a stoop who is left alone with the gunman after he sits down.
The suicide attempt with no bullets left is played straight, with no music and no cut and crying heard off camera, compared to films by a director transcribed as Rainer Fast Thunder, where what is off camera matters as much.
The film was an unexpected hit, likely because of its cathartic violent ending, which some read as Travis devolving and others celebrated as a Death Wish-style revenge; it is contrasted with Schrader-written Rolling Thunder as a more complex, sad picture of what a gunfight would look like.
No most rewatchable scene is picked because that would be weird for this movie.

Mid-70s New York City; Joe Spinell's job interview; God's lonely man line; Harvey Keitel's pimp look; Travis and Wizard scene; De Niro's preparation; Bernard Herrmann's score; cinematography; Jodie Foster's career

In the discussion (16)

Approx. transcript time · 00:53:37Read transcript

The mid-70s New York setting holds up, as does the opening job interview in which Joe Spinell sizes Travis up as a lunatic.
Spinell's 1970s run, including Godfather 2, Taxi Driver, Rocky, Sorcerer and Big Wednesday, is compared to De Niro's.
The 'loneliness has followed me my whole life... God's lonely man' line is Schrader writing about loneliness after almost losing his mind.
Keitel's sleeveless-shirt, hat, hair and muscles look is floated as something that should have become a Saturday Night Live character.
Keitel reportedly based the pimp on a real pimp he worked with at the Actors Studio; the pimp originally had five lines and Keitel added more, and the 'I'm hip / You don't look hip' exchange is loved.
Travis telling Wizard he has bad ideas in his head is short but pivotal; Peter Boyle is great as a man who knows he doesn't know what he's saying yet is weirdly right.
'You talking to me' was an omnipresent catchphrase for 15 or 20 years, though probably not as big a deal in 2021.
De Niro's preparation, including 15-hour days driving cabs, studying mental illness, recording Midwestern soldiers for the accent and losing 35 pounds, felt like the first time an actor's commitment was almost part of the marketing.
The method line runs from Brando to Dustin Hoffman in the same era, as in Marathon Man, and on to later method actors; De Niro's work is honed into behavior where others' choices show.
Asked about riding with cops for eight months for a Superbad cop role, the reply says they did have to ride with a cop in South Central and calls it the dumbest thing of all time.
Bernard Herman, arguably the most important film composer and known for Psycho, Vertigo and Citizen Kane, wrote his last score here; Scorsese, who mostly uses needle drops, begged him to do it, and the composer said 'all I hear is brass'. — Sean Fennessey
An editor on Barry dislikes the score and the bluesy saxophone gets a reservation, but it works and the opening music hits like a giant wave; hearing it reportedly made Scorsese feel Travis's doom and fate.
The composer died right after recording the score, at 64.
The cinematography is composed, natural-light and beautiful in a style rarely seen now.
The shoot came during a hot summer and the garbage strike with wet streets, and according to the cinematographer a lack of time and money forced them to let New York light itself, which turned out right.
In most versions of her life Foster might not have become one of the most celebrated actors of a generation and an accomplished filmmaker; a reply praises her acting and directing.

What’s Aged the Worst?

John Hinckley; Palantine campaign posters; porn-theater date scene; porn theaters; Jodie Foster playing a 12-and-a-half-year-old prostitute; taxis

In the discussion (12)

Approx. transcript time · 01:02:01Read transcript

John Hinkley became anchored to the film: five years later he tried to kill President Reagan to impress Foster after seeing the movie many times, and it postponed the 1981 Oscars, where De Niro was about to win for Raging Bull, by a day.
The idea of blaming culture for horrible events has not faded; Schrader and Scorsese argue that blaming the movie evacuates everyone else's responsibility. — Sean Fennessey
An uncomfortable Matt Lauer interview around an anniversary had Foster decline to talk about Hinkley; it messed her up and she stepped back for a couple of years; Hinkley is called maybe the best example ever of aged worst.
The Palantine 'We Are the People' posters are almost intentionally bad and maybe go too far, answered with a 'make America great' joke.
Asked what happened when he took his future wife to the porn film on a date, the reply jokes that they got married that night. — Sean Fennessey
The porn-theater date scene has aged worse and is skin-crawling; one participant goes to the bathroom whenever it plays in a theater.
The camera dollying away down the hallway during Travis's call to Betsy felt like the movie could not bear to watch, and seeing it in sixth grade turned one participant into a full movie fanatic.
Porn theaters where strangers watched together in the 70s and 80s are impossible to explain to people under 25.
Foster playing a 12-and-a-half-year-old prostitute is handled well, but the Keitel dance scene is uncomfortable from a parent's view; the next year's Pretty Baby with Brooke Shields raised the same question.
The girl who grabs Iris near the cab was the real teenage prostitute who served as her technical advisor, part of the film's honesty.
Taxis may not exist in 10 years; Schrader recalled a New York audience cheering the title, but with ride-sharing taxi drivers no longer hold the same place, like making a movie about a samurai.
The film made another taxi-driver movie nearly impossible, likened to how The Shining ruled out a hotel-caretaker story.

Casting What-Ifs

Harvey Keitel as the campaign worker

In the discussion (4)

Approx. transcript time · 01:10:40Read transcript

The casting items come from the internet with uncertain accuracy; Schrader reportedly wrote Travis with Jeff Bridges in mind, which seems possible.
Scorsese reportedly talked to Dustin Hoffman, who found the movie too crazy; its truth is doubted.
Keitel was definitely offered the campaign worker role Albert Brooks played and wanted the pimp instead; the studio had the pimp changed to a white character over riot and liability fears, and Keitel ended up in the part.
Reports conflict on whether Melanie Griffith was first offered Iris; a Linda Blair possibility and a Tatum O'Neal / Bad News Bears swap are also mentioned with doubt.

The Joey Pants “That Guy” Award

Leonard Harris; Victor Argo; Doughboy; Steven Prince; Diahnne Abbott

In the discussion (6)

Approx. transcript time · 01:13:25Read transcript

Joe Spinell is debated as a known name versus a that guy.
Leonard Harris is named the answer because he had only two roles, Palantine and the John Ritter movie Hero at Large.
Vic Argo, who beats up a man in the bodega, is in every Scorsese movie, including playing Peter in The Last Temptation of Christ.
The weird cab driver Doe Boy with the bathtub story is liked; on the commentary track the director admits not knowing what the story is about, and the actor is also in Over the Edge and Mean Streets.
Steven Prince, the gun salesman and star of Scorsese's documentary American Boy, is offered as another interesting pick.
Diahnne Abbott as the concession girl is so good as Travis hits on her.

Clint Howard Award for the Director Loves This Guy

No nominee settled

The panel proposes a new category here.

In the discussion (2)

Approx. transcript time · 01:15:43Read transcript

Bill Lawrence, on the podcast last week, suggested a category for the director's or star's friend who appears in many of their movies, named like the Jack Haley or Eddie House Award after NBA players who follow a superstar; the Jack Haley name is called a good one.
Asked who the guy in every Scorsese movie is, the answer offers Harry Northup or Vic Argo, saying both are in many of those films and it may be one of them. — Sean Fennessey

The Ruffalo / Hanna / Rubinek / Partridge Overacting Award

Martin Scorsese

In the discussion (2)

Approx. transcript time · 01:15:57Read transcript

Scorsese is said to win the next awards; the Vincent Hanna award is for somebody who dialed it up a notch.
Scorsese is given the Vincent Hanna.

The Dion Waiters Award for Best Heat Check Performance

Albert Brooks

In the discussion (3)

Approx. transcript time · 01:16:31Read transcript

Scorsese is first floated as a heat check for an indelible five-minute scene, followed by a question about any bigger heat check.
This is Albert Brooks's first movie; Scorsese hires a comedian for a boring part and lets him vamp, and Brooks wrote or improvised material with Scorsese and Shepherd.
The role is the beginning of the Brooks movie persona, like a prequel to his Broadcast News character, and he is given the award with agreement.

Half-Assed Internet Research

De Niro honoring his $35,000 deal; Connie Foster as body double; Julia Phillips's book on Cybill Shepherd's lines; Dick Smith's fake Mohawk; gunshot makeup effects; Mohawk on display at the Museum of the Moving Image

In the discussion (7)

Approx. transcript time · 01:18:10Read transcript

After De Niro's profile rose the producers feared they could not afford him, but he honored his original $35,000 deal, which helped get the movie made.
Jodie Foster's sister Connie, about 19, was her body double for scenes such as the last one.
Producer Julia Phillips's book says they were frustrated that Shepherd could not remember her lines in the coffee-and-pie scene.
The most shocking find is that De Niro's Mohawk was not real: Dick Smith made a bald cap with individually placed hairs so other scenes could be filmed after the Mohawk scenes.
Haircuts during a shoot make producers' heads explode; productions ask to be told before an actor cuts their hair.
Smith's gunshot effects are amazing, though a fishing-line pull on the neck wound is visible in slow motion; the blood running down the finger-gun hand is also smartly done.
The Mohawk hairpiece is on display at the Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria.

Apex Mountain

Clap pushups; mid-70s New York

In the discussion (5)

Approx. transcript time · 01:20:35Read transcript

This was not Apex Mountain for De Niro or for Scorsese.
Scorsese's Apex is debated between Raging Bull and Goodfellas; Goodfellas is favored, while another view says he has not reached it and is still going, with a joke about his next film.
Along with Rocky, 1976 was the apex for clap pushups, the first time one participant saw anyone work out in a movie, plus the hand over the burner.
This is Apex Mountain for disgusting mid-70s New York, which no movie captured better.
It is not the Apex for taxis, which came with the late-70s TV show Taxi; DC Cab with Mr. T is raised and rejected.

Picking Nits

Betsy flirting with Travis

In the discussion (6)

Approx. transcript time · 01:24:06Read transcript

The biggest nit is whether Betsy would really flirt with Travis, since someone so gorgeous must have been swatting men away for years.
A reply argues he has something charming and deep, echoed by her saying he is not like anyone she has met, before he self-destructs like athletes who blow it when it's working.
He is running a Neil Strauss 'The Game' pickup routine, negging her, and can say these things because he is a full-on stalker.
The film never presents Travis as a good guy yet makes viewers relate to his anger, like Alex in A Clockwork Orange, a bold, very 70s move.
Joker with Phoenix is the modern version, which may have needed to be an overt homage to get made.
Documentaries now show such behavior directly, and the Jeffrey Epstein documentary is what Taxi Driver would be today.

Sequel, Prequel, Limited Series, or All-Black Remake

In the discussion (1)

Approx. transcript time · 01:27:27Read transcript

The question is answered with a plea and a flat no.

Probably Unanswerable Questions

Dream or fantasy reading; rearview-mirror sound sting; Travis Bickle in 2021

In the discussion (7)

Approx. transcript time · 01:27:27Read transcript

Though the creators reject it, how much of the ending or the film is a dream or happens in Travis's head is open to interpretation. — Sean Fennessey
A reply says it is all happening, unlike Burning; it would feel unreal only if Betsy had been friendly at the end, and the sound over the rearview mirror shows the time bomb ticking again.
The meaning of the rearview sting is asked; Herrmann came up with the sound, played backwards, and it reads as Travis constantly watching his back.
Scorsese's and Calvinist-raised Schrader's religious streak suggests a heaven-and-hell reading, as with the burning flowers; Schrader's original ending was far bloodier, like a samurai movie or The Wild Bunch.
A 2021 Travis Bickle would be on the internet 19 hours a day, a less interesting movie.
Incel comparisons do not fit because Travis has no sexualization, and online he would find a community that fed his disturbances rather than being God's lonely man.
He would find his people or curate his own reality; in the film he can't, and even at the late-night diner he spaces out.

What Piece of Memorabilia Would You Want From This Movie?

Green jacket; 'We Are the People' Palantine poster; 'A couple of good scouts' card

In the discussion (3)

Approx. transcript time · 01:32:48Read transcript

The big green jacket is chosen as a piece of movie history.
One of the 'We Are the People' Charles Palantine posters, to frame. — Sean Fennessey
The 'a couple of good scouts' card would be funny every time, showing how out of touch Travis is, as does buying Betsy a record she already has.

Who Won the Movie?

Robert De Niro; Jodie Foster; Martin Scorsese

In the discussion (4)

Approx. transcript time · 01:33:48Read transcript

Usually inclined to pick the director, this participant picks De Niro because 'Are you talking to me' is the film's most remembered moment, citing De Niro telling a 40th-anniversary audience he was sick of hearing it; Scorsese wins almost every other movie he makes. — Sean Fennessey
Jodie Foster is picked because the Hinkley affair should have killed the movie and could have haunted her, yet her performance at 12 is unreal and layered, not merely a victim, and after an amazing career she remains a hero.
Scorsese is picked so each person is represented: after this movie anything seemed possible for him, and it became a go-to film for influential filmmakers.
Ending in three different places is called fitting for a perfectly directed, subjective movie.

Podcast choices

Sean Fennessey: Robert De Niro
Speaker not identified: Jodie Foster
Speaker not identified: Martin Scorsese

More from the conversation

A host-read Ringer network plug mentions two podcasts launched in the last couple of weeks, Black Girl Songbook and a sports-card show.

Approx. transcript time · 00:01:23Read transcript

The episode marks the 45th anniversary of Taxi Driver, called one of the greatest American movies, and follows a trailer cold open.

Approx. transcript time · 00:01:39Read transcript

Tarantino, a past guest, is quoted calling it maybe the greatest first-person character study on film, and praising Scorsese's run from the 70s into the 80s.

Approx. transcript time · 00:02:11Read transcript

The first-person character study draws on films Schrader talks about, like Pickpocket, but this is the one that connects because it was bleakly honest about an American type no one wanted to discuss.

Approx. transcript time · 00:03:18Read transcript

Travis Bickle became an archetype still invoked after mass shootings such as the Vegas shooter, and with John Hinckley; the film was prescient.

Approx. transcript time · 00:04:30Read transcript

Nothing before was so specific about someone descending into madness; 70s New York during the garbage strike perfectly matches a man coming out of a war who is losing his marbles.

Approx. transcript time · 00:04:56Read transcript

Bleak New York movies run from Mean Streets and Death Wish through The Warriors to Escape from New York, against Woody Allen's romanticized Annie Hall and Manhattan.

Approx. transcript time · 00:05:39Read transcript

The filmmakers understood the emotions on a primal level; the film feels instinctual and true rather than like a think piece, especially De Niro's face as Keitel's character talks about Iris.

Approx. transcript time · 00:06:44Read transcript

The ending is conflicting, and the flash in the rearview mirror saves it by showing Travis is still a ticking time bomb; first seen on TV at around 12, it seemed like Death Wish until its empathy showed he is sick.

Approx. transcript time · 00:08:31Read transcript

Travis's righteous American-male act is linked to the Capitol insurrection 45 years later.

Approx. transcript time · 00:09:55Read transcript

Schrader wrote it lonely after a breakdown, divorce and job loss; the delay until 1976 let New York catch up with the character.

Approx. transcript time · 00:10:35Read transcript

Schrader gave the script to De Palma, who passed and thought Scorsese right for it, though Scorsese could not yet convince producers.

Approx. transcript time · 00:11:40Read transcript

Schrader, De Niro and Scorsese relate to Bickle and fear becoming him, speaking of the film almost like church.

Approx. transcript time · 00:12:10Read transcript

Luck helped: De Niro's Godfather 2 Oscar raised his profile while he was paid his pre-Godfather 2 rate of $35,000, and De Niro's 1900 shoot and Scorsese's Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore bought another year.

Approx. transcript time · 00:12:41Read transcript

The guest's HBO show owes a huge debt to Taxi Driver; while mixing the last episode of season two he told Alec Berg they were ripping it off.

Approx. transcript time · 00:13:50Read transcript

De Niro's standout performances are Taxi Driver, Raging Bull and, over King of Comedy, Midnight Run, where he lets his co-star be funny; this film was like acting school.

Approx. transcript time · 00:14:28Read transcript

De Niro flinching after cursing in the Palantine cab is an unscripted moment that reveals character through behavior.

Approx. transcript time · 00:16:09Read transcript

The boom-up Mohawk reveal is shocking because De Niro never plays it big, like a normally cool roommate suddenly going insane.

Approx. transcript time · 00:17:27Read transcript

In his cameo Scorsese learned from De Niro, who told him to make him turn off the meter and acted with the back of his head.

Approx. transcript time · 00:17:47Read transcript

A Raging Bull take where De Niro changed his line to provoke a reaction from Joe Pesci shows him thinking about his scene partner.

Approx. transcript time · 00:19:23Read transcript

Hosting SNL, De Niro really played dead in a Weekend at Bernie's sketch, forcing the cast to carry him.

Approx. transcript time · 00:19:55Read transcript

Foster has said De Niro compulsively ran the diner scene with her and that the experience shaped her career; running a scene to death then throwing curveballs is compared to how Stephen Root works.

Approx. transcript time · 00:20:47Read transcript

In 1976 Foster released Taxi Driver, The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane, Bugsy Malone and Freaky Friday.

Approx. transcript time · 00:22:16Read transcript

Cybill Shepherd was a platonic American ideal of blonde beauty after The Last Picture Show; the role was a smart move and she is quite good and oddly matched with Travis.

Approx. transcript time · 00:23:27Read transcript

No one director can be called the most important of all time.

Approx. transcript time · 00:25:03Read transcript

Scorsese is the most significant American filmmaker of the last 75 years and changed the language of movies.

Approx. transcript time · 00:25:20Read transcript

Scorsese's films always feel personal, from Goodfellas' editing to the last 30 minutes of The Irishman, Hugo and The Age of Innocence.

Approx. transcript time · 00:25:38Read transcript

Scorsese's cameo, filling in for a Mean Streets actor who got hurt, shows how young he was; the scene is Travis realizing he is not alone.

Approx. transcript time · 00:27:36Read transcript

Taxi Driver is weighed as the most influential 70s movie for later directors and actors; Godfather is the gut answer, though its gritty style may have shaped 90s directors.

Approx. transcript time · 00:28:59Read transcript

The mid-70s Oscar nominees could all be the most influential films, depending on the career you want.

Approx. transcript time · 00:29:49Read transcript

The Godfather is the structurally perfect film, while Girlfriends and The Last Detail are also cited; The Last Detail led Scorsese to hire Michael Chapman.

Approx. transcript time · 00:30:40Read transcript

Rocky beat Network, Taxi Driver, All the President's Men and Bound for Glory for Best Picture, and Scorsese was not nominated.

Approx. transcript time · 00:31:50Read transcript

Oscar snubs recalled from childhood: Goodfellas losing to Dances with Wolves, and John Candy not winning for Planes, Trains and Automobiles.

Approx. transcript time · 00:32:09Read transcript

The Best Director field was an odd international mix; Peter Finch won Best Actor, De Niro is historically the greater performance, and Schrader's screenplay not being nominated is crazy.

Approx. transcript time · 00:33:02Read transcript

The film had a $1.9 million budget, made $28.4 million and drew a lot of critical acclaim.

Approx. transcript time · 00:33:59Read transcript

Steven Prince should get something for pitching drugs and the 'ain't that a little honey' holster line, and the playground sound during the gun scene is a perfect choice.

Approx. transcript time · 01:17:40Read transcript

The one needle drop, a Jackson Browne song, is debated as weird versus really nice.

Approx. transcript time · 01:22:01Read transcript

Scorsese kept a repeated line that the editors hated, reportedly De Niro flubbing, which puts viewers in Travis's head as he writes his diary; the film is about how crazy writing makes you.

Approx. transcript time · 01:22:18Read transcript

The best prop in the movie is Travis's card to his parents.

Approx. transcript time · 01:22:53Read transcript

The choppy narration of the letter from Iris's family is enjoyed, and her father seems like he has problems.

Approx. transcript time · 01:23:22Read transcript

Asked about a joking one-man Barry shoot, the guest says COVID hit a week before season three filming, almost a year ago, and season four is now written.

Approx. transcript time · 01:38:09Read transcript

The hosts close by thanking Bill Hader and Sean.

Approx. transcript time · 01:39:17Read transcript