Taxxi

Written by Luc Besson (director of 'Léon' and 'The Fifth Element') this French film is funnier and with better action than most American blockbusters. It tells the story of Daniel (Samy Naceri) who starts as a taxi driver. He is an excellent driver but he never rides by the rules. With the police his taxi is famous, although they have never caught him or even seen a license plate. One day Daniel takes a woman Camille (Manuela Gourary) to her home and she says she will keep his card to call again. She does when her son Émilien (Frédéric Diefenthal) needs a ride. Daniel, who thinks Émilien works with IBM, of course disobeys all the rules and at the end of the ride Émilien reveals his true identity.

Fortunately for Daniel the police has some trouble with a Mercedes-gang. Bank robbers who even inform the police before they rob a bank, with a Mercedes as the getaway car. Since Daniel knows much of cars he can help Émilien solve the case and keep his drivers license. Émilien desperately wants to solve this case because he wants to impress Petra (Emma Sjöberg), the girl he is in love with but always looks down on him. Daniel agrees since his driving is his life. He has to miss a lot of quality time with his girlfriend Lilly (Marion Cotillard) for this.

I agree with you if you say the story sounds familiar. That part is not very original although it has some original touches. Daniel, for example, was a pizza delivery boy before he started his job as a taxi driver and the early scenes that deal with this fact are a lot of fun to watch. But the story is not what 'Taxi' is about. It is about funny moments and some good action. I have to admit there are plenty of funny moments, every scene between Daniel and Lilly is terrific, the action looks good and the cinematography for this kind of movie is perfect. Although the character of Daniel can get on your nerves, a little too much of a wise guy, Samy Naceri does a nice job portraying him.

In the end I enjoyed this movie very much. The clichés and simple choices sometimes (the bad guy grabs his gun the minute Émilien reveals himself as a police officer who wants to ask some questions) can not spoil the fun the movie has, and therefore the audience. Don't expect a 'Lethal Weapon' but it is not that far from it.

This movie has some of the best car scenes ever filmed. The thing that make them so great is that they are filmed on the road in citys and not on closed racing tracks.Not only the driving is superb,but the way it is filmed just makes you wanna stand up and shout "bravo".

The down side of the movie is that it has a very bad plot and some boring scenes.But it is all worth it when the car scenes come. The dialogue is sometimes very funny and so is the french police.

So if you like fast cars and incompetent police officers then this is the movie for you.

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.

Why do people take films such as this SO seriously. Besson doesn't have to make the same film every time, he might want to do something for a laugh at some point, and that's what he's done here. The film is COOL to the maximum from the setting to the acting to the location to the soundtrack. It is a well rounded little baby of a film that Besson has knocked up in his spare time and just proves what an all round top bloke he is. Go see this film with an open mind and you can't fault it simple easy clean storyline lets the movie flow and move easily and when you stack on the petrolhead action on top of the layer of humour (which was okay) and put between good start sequence and highly amusing plot ending bread, you've got a veritable good movie sandwich. Once again French film is proven to be quite brilliant. Give this to some blockbuster US outfit and they'll create some half-assed dross that feels like walking through bubblegum. Instead its quick, slick and an all round top flick. Only the Italian Job comes close.

What a film! I had a list of films to watch on a plane and my last choice would have been the French one. But it was suggested to me and would have been ignorant not to have watched it. A thrill packed, speedy comedy. The car chases were superb and the French humour translated perfectly. I thought the subtitles might get in the way, but I was wrong. Half of the time you didn't even need to read them. I would recommend this to anyone who likes the thrill of driving fast and comedy thrown in for good measure. Don't let the subtiltles put you off...