Roger Ebert instantly praised it as one of the greatest films he had ever seen , claiming : '' Taxi Driver '' is a hell , from the opening shot of a cab emerging from stygian clouds of steam to the climactic killing scene in which the camera finally looks straight down . Scorsese wanted to look away from Travis 's rejection ; we almost want to look away from his life . But he 's there , all right , and he 's suffering . It was nominated for four Academy Awards , including Best Picture and Best Actor ( De Niro ) , and received the Palme d'Or at the 1976 Cannes Film Festival . It has been selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry . The film was chosen by '' Time '' as one of the 100 best films of all time
1976 Cannes Film Festival
1976 Cannes Film Festival
Taxi Driver