Taxi Driver
Updated: 12/10/2025, 3:58:39 PM Wikipedia source
Taxi Driver is a 1976 American neo-noir psychological drama film directed by Martin Scorsese and written by Paul Schrader. Set in a morally decaying New York City following the Vietnam War, it stars Robert De Niro as veteran Marine and taxi driver Travis Bickle, whose mental state deteriorates as he works nights in the city. The film also features Jodie Foster, Cybill Shepherd, Harvey Keitel, Peter Boyle, Leonard Harris and Albert Brooks (in his first feature film role). Filming began in summer 1975, with actors taking pay cuts to ensure that the project could be completed on its low budget of $1.9 million. For the score, Bernard Herrmann composed what would be his final score. The music was finished mere hours before his death, and the film is dedicated to him. Theatrically released by Columbia Pictures on February 8, 1976, the film was critically and commercially successful despite generating controversy for both its graphic violence in the film's climax, and for the casting of 12-year-old Foster as a child prostitute. The film received numerous accolades, including the Palme d'Or at the 1976 Cannes Film Festival and four nominations at the 49th Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actor (for De Niro) and Best Supporting Actress (for Foster). Although Taxi Driver generated further controversy for inspiring John Hinckley Jr.'s attempted assassination of President Ronald Reagan in 1981, the film has remained popular. According to STRAND Magazine, it is considered one of the greatest films ever made, and one of the most culturally significant and inspirational of its time. In 2022, Sight & Sound named it the 29th-best film ever in its decennial critics' poll, and the 12th-greatest film of all time on its directors' poll, tied with Barry Lyndon. In 1994, the film was designated as "culturally, historically, or aesthetically" significant by the U.S. Library of Congress and was selected for preservation in the National Film Registry.
Infobox
Tables
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic | |
| Award | Category | Nominee(s) | Result | Ref. |
| Academy Awards | Best Picture | Michael Phillips and Julia Phillips | Nominated | |
| Best Actor | Robert De Niro | Nominated | ||
| Best Supporting Actress | Jodie Foster | Nominated | ||
| Best Original Score | Bernard Herrmann | Nominated | ||
| Blue Ribbon Awards | Best Foreign Film | Martin Scorsese | Won | |
| British Academy Film Awards | Best Film | Nominated | ||
| Best Direction | Nominated | |||
| Best Actor in a Leading Role | Robert De Niro | Nominated | ||
| Best Actress in a Supporting Role | Jodie Foster (also for Bugsy Malone) | Won | ||
| Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles | Won | |||
| Best Film Editing | Marcia Lucas, Tom Rolf, and Melvin Shapiro | Nominated | ||
| Anthony Asquith Award for Film Music | Bernard Herrmann | Won | ||
| Cannes Film Festival | Palme d'Or | Martin Scorsese | Won | |
| David di Donatello Awards | Special David | Jodie Foster | Won | |
| Martin Scorsese | Won | |||
| Directors Guild of America Awards | Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures | Nominated | ||
| Fotogramas de Plata | Best Foreign Movie Performer | Robert De Niro | Won | |
| Golden Globe Awards | Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama | Nominated | ||
| Best Screenplay – Motion Picture | Paul Schrader | Nominated | ||
| Grammy Awards | Album of Best Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or a Television Special | Bernard Herrmann | Nominated | |
| Hochi Film Awards | Best Foreign Film | Martin Scorsese | Won | |
| Kansas City Film Critics Circle Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Jodie Foster | Won | |
| Kinema Junpo Awards | Best Foreign Language Film Director | Martin Scorsese | Won | |
| Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards | Best Actor | Robert De Niro | Won | |
| Best Music | Bernard Herrmann | Won | ||
| New Generation Award | Jodie Foster and Martin Scorsese | Won | ||
| National Film Preservation Board | National Film Registry | Inducted | ||
| National Society of Film Critics Awards | Best Film | 2nd Place | ||
| Best Director | Martin Scorsese | Won | ||
| Best Actor | Robert De Niro | Won | ||
| Best Supporting Actor | Harvey Keitel | 2nd Place | ||
| Best Supporting Actress | Jodie Foster | Won | ||
| Best Cinematography | Michael Chapman | 3rd Place | ||
| New York Film Critics Circle Awards | Best Director | Martin Scorsese | Runner-up | |
| Best Actor | Robert De Niro | Won | ||
| Best Supporting Actor | Harvey Keitel | Runner-up | ||
| Best Supporting Actress | Jodie Foster | Runner-up | ||
| Online Film & Television Association Awards | Film Hall of Fame: Productions (1998) | Inducted | ||
| Film Hall of Fame: Characters (2021) | Travis Bickle (played by Robert De Niro) | Inducted | ||
| Sant Jordi Awards | Best Performance in a Foreign Film | Robert De Niro | Won | |
| Turkish Film Critics Association Awards | Best Foreign Film | 4th Place | ||
| Writers Guild of America Awards | Best Drama – Written Directly for the Screen | Paul Schrader | Nominated | |
References
- Posthumous nomination.
- Posthumous award.
- Posthumous nomination
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