Liliputin -5321

"Taxi driver" will never ever take a back seat in history of American cinema ... "
Roger Ebert

Liliputins. What, the heck, is this?
http://stihi.ru/2021/11/24/7101

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Taxi Drivers Terrifying Protagonist

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take a back seat
idiomatic phrase
variants or take a backseat
: to have or assume a secondary position or status : to be or become less important, active, or powerful
Howard loved directing "more than I even thought I would," and his acting career has taken a back seat ever since.
—Newsweek
That's why Bryant's willingness to tone down his game is significant. It doesn't mean, however, that he's content to take a backseat indefinitely.
—Phil Taylor
—often used with to
Physically and emotionally, these guys take a back seat to no one.
—Mark Vancil

Examples of take a back seat in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
But Horizon Investment’s Dickson said the gauge of price growth now takes a back seat to labor data following the Fed’s last meeting.
—Alex Harring, CNBC, 4 Oct. 2024
Surprisingly, in a close election year, marked by animus from one political party to the next, the economic news has taken a back seat to other issues deemed more worrisome.
—Joel Shulman, Forbes, 3 Oct. 2024
The race was the second most expensive House primary in U.S. history, taking a back seat only to the contest earlier this year for Rep. Jamaal Bowman’s Bronx-area seat, according to the group ad impact.
—Karissa Waddick, USA TODAY, 7 Aug. 2024
For him, ballot-count accuracy took a back seat to his self-serving political objectives.
—Mercury News Editorial, The Mercury News, 11 Oct. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'take a back seat.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.


Word History
First Known Use
1838, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of take a back seat was in 1838
See more words from the same year
Dictionary Entries Near take a back seat
take aback

take a back seat


MLA
“Take a back seat.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/take. Accessed 4 Nov. 2024.


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Taxi Driver

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Taxi Driver
At night, a man stands in front of a bright yellow taxi while looking to the side. Underneath him, the words "Robert De Niro" and "Taxi Driver" appear in red font on a yellow background.
Theatrical release poster


Taxi Driver is a 1976 American neo-noir psychological drama film directed by Martin Scorsese, written by Paul Schrader, and starring Robert De Niro, Jodie Foster, Cybill Shepherd, Harvey Keitel, Peter Boyle, Leonard Harris, and Albert Brooks. Set in a morally decaying New York City following the Vietnam War, the film follows Travis Bickle (De Niro), a veteran Marine and taxi driver, and his deteriorating mental state as he works nights in the city.

With The Wrong Man (1956) and A Bigger Splash (1973) as inspiration, Scorsese wanted the film to feel like a dream to audiences[citation needed]. Filming began in the summer of 1975 in New York City, with actors taking pay cuts to ensure that the project could be completed on a low budget of $1.9 million. Production concluded that same year. Bernard Herrmann composed the film in what would be his final score; the music was finished just hours before his death; the film is dedicated to him.

The film was theatrically released by Columbia Pictures on February 8, 1976, and was a critical and commercial success despite generating controversy for its graphic violence in the climactic ending and the casting of then 12-year-old Foster in the role of a child prostitute. The film received numerous accolades including the Palme d'Or at the 1976 Cannes Film Festival and four nominations at the 49th Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actor (for De Niro), and Best Supporting Actress (for Foster).

Although Taxi Driver generated further controversy for its role in John Hinckley Jr.'s plan to assassinate then-President Ronald Reagan, the film has remained popular. It is considered one of the greatest films ever made and one of the most culturally significant and inspirational of its time, garnering cult status.[8] In 2022, Sight & Sound named it the 29th-best film ever in its decennial critics' poll, and the 12th-greatest film of all time on its directors' poll, tied with Barry Lyndon. In 1994, the film was considered "culturally, historically, or aesthetically" significant by the U.S. Library of Congress and was selected for preservation in the National Film Registry.

Plot
In New York City, Vietnam veteran Travis Bickle takes a job as a night shift taxi driver to cope with his chronic insomnia and loneliness, frequenting adult movie theaters and keeping a diary in which he consciously attempts to include aphorisms such as "you're only as healthy as you feel." He becomes disgusted with the crime and urban decay that he witnesses in the city and dreams about getting "the scum off the streets."

Travis becomes infatuated with Betsy, a campaign volunteer for Senator and presidential candidate Charles Palantine. Travis enters the campaign office where she works and asks her out for coffee, to which she agrees. Betsy agrees to go on another date with him. During their date, Travis takes Betsy to a porn theater, which repulses her into leaving. He attempts to reconcile with her, but to no avail. Enraged, he storms into the campaign office where she works and then proceeds to berate her before being kicked out of the office.

Experiencing an existential crisis and seeing various acts of prostitution throughout the city, Travis confides in a fellow taxi driver nicknamed Wizard about his violent thoughts. However, Wizard dismisses them and assures him that he will be fine. To find an outlet for his rage, Travis follows an intense physical training regimen. He gets in contact with black market gun dealer Easy Andy, and buys four handguns. At home, Travis practices drawing his weapons, even creating a quick-draw rig hidden in his sleeve. He begins attending Palantine's rallies to scope out his security. One night, Travis shoots and kills a black man attempting to rob a convenience store run by a friend of his.

On his trips around the city, Travis regularly encounters Iris, a 12-year-old child prostitute. Fooling her pimp and abusive lover, Sport, into thinking he wants to solicit her, Travis meets with her in private and tries to persuade her to stop prostituting herself. Soon after, Travis cuts his hair into a mohawk and attends a public rally where he plans to assassinate Palantine. However, Secret Service agents see Travis putting his hand inside his jacket approach him, escalating into a foot chase. Travis escapes pursuit and makes it home undetected.

That evening, Travis drives to the brothel where Iris works to kill Sport. He enters the building and shoots Sport and one of Iris's clients, a mafioso. Travis is shot several times, but manages to kill the two men. He then brawls with the bouncer, whom he manages to stab through the hand with his knife located in his shoe and finish off with a gunshot to the head. Travis attempts to commit suicide, but is out of bullets. Severely injured, he slumps on a couch next to a sobbing Iris. As police respond to the scene, a delirious Travis imitates shooting himself in the head using his finger.

Travis goes into a coma due to his injuries. He is heralded by the press as a heroic vigilante and not prosecuted for the murders. He receives a letter from Iris' parents in Pittsburgh, who thank him and reveal that she is safe and attending school back home.

After recovering, Travis grows his hair out and returns to work, where he encounters Betsy as a fare; they interact cordially, with Betsy saying she followed his story in the newspapers. Travis drops her at home, and declines to take her money, driving off with a smile. He suddenly becomes agitated after noticing something in his rear-view mirror, but continues driving into the night.