Now, I am going to go out on a limb here and say that Rocky probably shouldn’t have won Best Picture way back in 1976. I am a huge Rocky junkie; I watch all of them in a marathon once a year. It was a huge success, it has become an icon, it has been spoofed, mocked, reenacted, and had 4/5 good sequels. Yes, Rocky 5 is terrible, everybody knows that.
But, what people seem to forget is there was another movie just as iconic, even more so in some regards, which got absolutely snubbed at the Oscars.
I am talking about Taxi Driver.
This is the movie that truly put Martin Scorsese on the map. It was visceral, it was intense, and it was just amazing. From the score to Robert DeNiro’s multiple iconic scenes, it has become more spoofed than even Rocky. “You talking to me?” I mean come on! That is the line that EVERYONE says, even if they don’t know what movie it is from.
It was the beginning of one of the greatest careers in film history. He had already made waves with Mean Streets, and would go on to make Raging Bull four years later. Yet, Taxi Driver did not win a single Oscar, despite its 4 nominations. Let’s just ignore the fact that Scorsese wasn’t even nominated.
Actually, let’s not ignore that.
What the heck Academy? Did you not recognize greatness when it first appeared?
I guess it can be said the movie was too bloody and controversial when it was first released, yet it still stands as one of the greatest of all time. It is held in higher regard than Rocky ever will be, and it was just another great performance from Robert DeNiro who had already won an Oscar for The Godfather Part II.
So, take a break from whatever you are doing and watch what is considered one of the greatest movies of all time. I hate to bash on Rocky, because let’s be honest, whenever you hear that soundtrack all you wanna do is run up stairs and do this:
(http://gifsoup.com/view/4240972/rocky-climbs-the-stairs.html)
Anyway, here’s the trailer for Taxi Driver:
Raging Film 