A great classic

I already saw this movie but, since it was such a long time ago, I was really eager to check it out again. Basically, it was the first masterpiece produced by Martin Scorsese and Robert De Niro. 3 years before, they had already made 'Mean Streets' together and it was already a real breakthrough for both of them but it is with this movie that they really started to change cinema as an Art and they will keep doing it, at least twice again with 'Raging Bull' and 'Goodfellas'. This movie was such a fascinating character study of a guy who is basically a creep. Sure, Bickle can be charismatic but more than often he would rather antagonize the people around him who would then rather take their distance increasing his loneliness in the process. Eventually, De Niro gave one of the best perfomances of his prestigious career and, plain and simply, one of the best performances ever given on a motion picture. For Scorsese, its status changed forever from promising young director to bonafide master. I mean, the whole thing was made with so much skills, every detail was closed to perfection and the story is just completely fascinating, a profound and dark study of the human soul. Basically, it is so dark, it is probably the most nihilistic movie I have seen. While, in most movies, New York is displayed as a breezing metropolis, here, you finally get to see its ugly and even filthy side. I think it is also one of the very few movies where you get to see a teenage prostitute played by an actual teenager. The fact that Jodie Foster was brilliant also helped to make this character quite remarkable. Anyway, to conclude, it is a great classic, I just love the damned thing and it is basically a must see for any movie lover.


9/10