Taxi Driver by Martin Scorsese 1976 (USA) 1h 54

Suffering from insomnia, disturbed loner Travis Bickle (Robert De Niro) takes a job as a New York City cabbie, haunting the streets nightly, growing increasingly detached from reality as he dreams of cleaning up the filthy city. When Travis meets pretty campaign worker Betsy (Cybill Shepherd), he becomes obsessed with the idea of saving the world, first plotting to assassinate a presidential candidate, then directing his attentions toward rescuing 12-year-old prostitute Iris (Jodie Foster).

"No other movie can plunge you, so sensuously and so completely, into the forgotten 70s New York of checkered cabs and porno-chic, with all the extraordinary sights and sounds: like that pop-eyed busking drummer with the jet-black hair demonstrating indistinguishable percussion styles to uncaring passers-by. He turns up in my dreams on a pretty regular basis.
What a mad and brilliant film it is: 1,000-degree proof Seventies cinema."
Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian

Number 31 in the British Film Institute’s critics’ top 100, but number 5 in the same organisation’s directors’ top 100.


Try and make it to the MLC Librairie Café for 6.45 to get a drink and have a chat, then we'll have a brief introduction to the director and film, and start the film promptly at 7.00, with time afterwards to discuss. Please do try to be on time out of respect for others watching the film.

This is an English language film with no subtitles. Although there is no cost to this screening, I will ask you to buy a 1 Franc raffle ticket in order to have the chance of taking the DVD home with you. It is also helpful to Francis, whose premises we are using, if you buy a drink.