Product Research - Analysis of 'Taxi Driver'

We were told that we had to analyse an existing psychological thriller in detail. Here, I analysed the opening 5 minutes of 'Taxi Driver.' This thriller starts off with the credits which are written in red block capitals on a black background, which could represent the angry and passionate nature (in the sense that he is passionate in wanting to wipe the "scum" off the streets) of the main character. Furthermore, this writing fortifies the idea of 'Taxi Driver' using typical conceptions of its genre. This builds tension from the beginning of the film, thus setting a foreboding atmosphere for the audience. Morevover, the non diegetic music throughout these credits uses percussion instruments whilst the screen is black, and the volume reaches a crescendo when fog and Travis's yellow taxi appear on screen, which presents the idea that the apprehensive nature of the film is solely because of the main character and his problems.

There is then an extreme close up shot of the main character (focused on his eyes), which dehumanises him and hints to the audience that all is not well in his life. The non diegetic sound changes to Blues music (with a saxophone), which reflects his sad, alienated state of mind. When the main character is driving his taxi, the camera uses shots from his point of view, so that we can see what he can see, and possibly understand what he's feeling. This part of the opening uses pathetic fallacy (it is raining), which blurs Travis's - and the audience's - vision. This displays the idea that he sees the world in a different way to the "norm." In addition, the people passing Travis's taxi are all moving in slow motion, which also brings forth the idea that the main character sees everything in a different light. The atmosphere is dark and mysterious to emphasise the psychological thriller genre and to tap into the audience's primal fears.

(This post was created by Jasmine, for some reason my name isn't showing up at the bottom).