Taxi

Gerard Pires, France/Italy, 1998, 89 mins

How lousy must it be to remain stuck on a 50cc scooter, despite dreams of being a 3000cc racecar driver? Daniel Morales knows the feeling! Stuck in the Marseilles pizza delivery trade, he finally gets enough money to create a super-car and gain a taxi license. After being busted for driving at upwards of 140mph, he starts helping the local police out as a driver for the squad, attempting to capture a crack team of bank robbers who drop hints about which banks they will rob, but disappear in a blur only Daniel can see.

Daniel’s romantic life obviously suffers because of his new-found relationship with the local police, but with the thrust in his tuned-up car, who needs a woman? The rest of the film is a wonderful mix of police (who can do slapstick in any culture), romantic comedy and fast-paced driving scenes. The film, written by Luc Besson (director of the super-film Léon), in the words of our Junior Vice President “can’t help but look sexy”. This film is funny, exciting and above all, supercool. It outshines all other car-related movies in its chase scenes (I dare you to argue. I double-dare you) and is so funky it hurts.

What on earth could you possibly be doing tonight that is better than watching this film? I’m going to be there, and I am positive you’ll have a top time watching it with me.

Review by Niko Ovenden
Taken from EUFS Programme Spring 2004

Marseilles pizza delivery boy Daniel finally quits his dead-end job, having saved up the money for a taxi. This, however, is no ordinary Peugeot 406. Seeing as Daniel really wants to be a F1 driver, it's a souped up monster that wouldn't be out of place in a Bond film. Following a blatant speed infraction Daniel quickly has his taxi license revoked. It looks like it's back to delivering pizzas. But inept young cop and all-round loser Emilien has a proposal: If Daniel will help him catch a well-organised crew of German bank robbers who are terrorising Marseilles, he can have his license back.

Opening with an exilhirating high-speed scooter (!) race to the sounds of Misirilou, Taxi immediately declares its intent: To show that, anything Hollywood can do in the line of stunt and spectacle driven action movies, the French ‘cinema du look' can do just as well. And, with more cunning stunts than The Italian Job or Speed and cooler car chases than The French Connection, Taxi succeeds.

True, Taxi also has all the faults of such Hollywood films in terms of poor characterisation and dialogue, low credibility, and rather gratuitous insertions of drugtaking, sex and nudity. But it's easier to forgive its failings here than the latest $100 million Schwarzenegger or Willis vehicle. It was, after all, shot on a relatively low budget and Luc Besson apparently knocked out the script when he had a few days off between projects.

To sum up, then, if testosterone-fuelled adrenaline-pumping action is what you want, Taxi is the film for you. If, however, you're looking for any subtlety or depth, or if your notions of good French cinema are formed by the likes of Eric Rohmer and Robert Bresson, avoid it like the plague.

Review by David Khune Jr
Taken from EUFS programme spring 2000