Taxi Driver 1976 Vegamovies -

Taxi Driver (1976), directed by Martin Scorsese, is a definitive urban psychological drama that captures the grit of 1970s New York City through the eyes of an increasingly unhinged protagonist. Essential Movie Information Director: Martin Scorsese Writer: Paul Schrader

Cinematography and Direction

Quick facts

• Release year: 1976
• Director: Martin Scorsese
• Writer: Paul Schrader
• Producer: Julia Phillips, Michael Phillips, Tony Garnett
• Main cast: Robert De Niro (Travis Bickle), Jodie Foster (Iris), Cybill Shepherd (Betsy), Harvey Keitel (Sport/“Matthew”), Peter Boyle (Wizard)
• Cinematography: Michael Chapman
• Editor: Tom Rolf, Melvin Shapiro
• Music: Bernard Herrmann (his final score; he died shortly after completing it)
• Runtime: ~114 minutes (varies slightly by release)
• Rating on original release: R (for violence, language, and adult themes)

• Cinematography: Michael Chapman’s nocturnal palette uses neon, rain, and shadow to render New York as both seedy and operatic. Close-ups and quick cuts convey Travis’s fractured viewpoint; long takes immerse viewers in the city’s rhythms.
• Sound and score: Bernard Herrmann’s final score (his last) oscillates between brooding jazz and tense motifs, amplifying Travis’s interiority. Street sound — car horns, distant sirens — anchors the film in urban realism.
• Expressionist touches: Scorsese blends documentary-like realism with expressionistic flourishes (subjective camera angles, dreamlike sequences) to align spectators with Travis’s warped perceptions.