Taxi (1998/I)

Director:

Gérard Pirès

Writer:

Luc Besson (writer)

Release Date:

20 November 1998 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Comedy | Crime

Plot:

In Marseilles (France), skilled pizza delivery boy Daniel who drives a scooter finally has his dreams come true...

Plot Keywords:

Police | Marseille | Pizza Delivery Boy | Taxi | Vomit

Awards:

3 wins & 5 nominations

Cast

Samy Naceri	...	Daniel Morales
Frédéric Diefenthal	...	Émilien Coutant-Kerbalec
Marion Cotillard	...	Lilly Bertineau
Manuela Gourary	...	Camille Coutant-Kerbalec
Emma Wiklund	...	Petra (as Emma Sjöberg)
Bernard Farcy	...	Commissaire Gibert
Georges Neri	...	Joe
Guy Quang	...	Pizza Joe Motorcyclist
Maurice Murcia	...	Pensioned Taxi Driver
Sabine Bail	...	Femme Préfecture
Dan Herzberg	...	Paulo
Sébastien Thiery	...	Driving Instructor
Eric Bérenger	...	Butcher (as Eric Berenger)
Philippe du Janerand	...	Passenger to Airport
Christophe Fesquet	...	Flic Radar #1

Runtime:

86 min

Country:

France

Language:

French | German | Korean | Portuguese

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Iceland:L | Singapore:NC-16 | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Belgium:KT | Chile:14 | Finland:K-12 | France:U | Germany:12 | Hong Kong:IIA | Italy:T | Netherlands:16 | Norway:11 | Portugal:M/12 | South Korea:15 (video rating) (cut) | South Korea:18 (original rating) | Spain:13 | Sweden:11 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | UK:15 | Ireland:12

Filming Locations:

Marseille, Bouches-du-Rhône, France

Company:

ARP Sélection

Trivia:

Just before filming was supposed to begin, director Gérard Pirès fell off a horse and needed to stay in hospital for a few weeks. During this time Gérard Krawczyk (who would later direct the sequels Taxi 2 (2000) and Taxi 3 (2003)) filled in on-set while Pirès watched the dailies at the end of each day to check on the progress of filming.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When Emilien is supposed to be naked under the towel after he was in the shower, he drops the towel when Petra walks in to his office - you can see that he is using a pair of white boxers.

Quotes:

Lilly Bertineau: Flowers! Can we smoke them?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Getaway: Black Monday (2004) (VG)

Soundtrack:

Client aéroport

A great film all round!

In my opinion this is the one of the best mainstream French movies in a long while. I know that for many of us subtitled French movies are not regular choices. The film didn't break any UK/USA box office records (presumably as people were put of by its subtitles and french origins) which is a real shame. Well why should you give this one a try? Here goes...

The movie was written and produced by Luc Besson, director of such films as Leon (aka The Professional in the USA), The Fifth Element (with Bruce Willis), Kiss of the Dragon (with Jet Li and Bridget Fonda) and Nikita (aka La Femme Nikita in the USA).

The story follows Daniel, a moped pizza delivery guy who has worked to fulfill his dream of becoming a Marseilles taxi driver. He has tuned and tweaked his own taxi into something a little special... something a little out of the ordinary... I don't want to give the game away so I'll leave it there!

The film is a fast paced thrill ride that crosses the boundaries of action, comedy, romance, farce and buddy movie amongst many other genres. The characters are likeable, the humour is quick and snappy and the driving is fast and furious (some of the best chases seen on screen for a few years). After a short while you barely realise that you are reading the subtitles. The storyline may not be particularly original but it is well executed overall. The soundtrack is funky and fits in perfectly with the film.

It's not Shakespeare, but it never sets out to be Shakespeare. So if you are looking for a nicely shot film, suitable for just about anyone, give it a try.