A Taxi Driver can over-reach towards its final chase sequences, which enter the realm of fantasy, but they’re not enough to de-rail this fine film.
A Taxi Driver(택시운전사)
✭ ✭ ✭ Read critic reviews
Korea · 2017
2h 18m
Director Jang Hoon
Starring Song Kang-ho, Thomas Kretschmann, Yoo Hae-jin, Ryu Jun-yeol
Genre Action, Drama, History
Add to Watchlist
Please login to add films to your watchlist.
The true story of South Korean taxi driver Sa-bok Kim who accepts a job driving German journalist Jürgen Hinzpeter to Gwangju. They arrive to find the city engulfed in a violent conflict between student protesters and the military. This zero-to-hero film, based on the 1980 Gwangju Uprising, is a compassionate tale of selflessness, patriotism, and morality.
What are people saying?
What are critics saying?
The New York Times by Andy Webster
The film climaxes with a breathless escape from Gwangju, as Kim and Hinzpeter elude government vehicles with the aid of other cabdrivers. But most impressive is Mr. Song, who persuasively conveys a working stiff’s political awakening.
While the film clearly taps into the national zeitgeist, buoyed by a sweeping show of people’s power that ousted the president, international audiences should also appreciate the actors’ feisty turns.
Los Angeles Times by Michael Rechtshaffen
Grafting the buddy picture onto the framework of the classic political thriller, director Jang Hoon also manages to find time for lighter moments of human comedy, and those seemingly disparate elements are deftly navigated by Song and his fellow fully dimensional characters.
A Taxi Driver is a Korean epic, a tipping point in the history of South Korea. A little old-fashioned and a touch melodramatic, it’s still a compelling Korean “Year of Living Dangerously.”
The Hollywood Reporter by Sheri Linden
In unexpected and wonderfully satisfying ways, A Taxi Driver taps into the symbiotic relationship between foreign correspondents and locals, particularly in times of crisis.
RogerEbert.com by Simon Abrams
Song's performance makes me wish the rest of A Taxi Driver was as thoughtful.
Users who liked this film also liked
Joint Security Area
(공동경비구역 JSA)
Eleven shots! The truth is there.
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- Korea • 2000
- Director Park Chan-wook
- Cast Lee Byung-hun, Song Kang-ho, Lee Young-ae, Kim Tae-woo, Shin Ha-kyun, Christoph Hofrichter
- Genre Action, Drama, Thriller, War
- Available on Kocowa, ARROW, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Vudu, Amazon Video, YouTube, Tubi TV, Midnight Pulp
Until the End of the World
(Bis ans Ende der Welt)
Dr. Farber, in trying to find a cure for his wife's blindness, has created a device that allows the user to send images directly to the brain, enabling the blind to see.
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- Germany, France, Australia • 1991
- Director Wim Wenders
- Cast William Hurt, Solveig Dommartin, Chick Ortega, Eddy Mitchell, Ernie Dingo, Sam Neill
- Genre Thriller, Drama, Science Fiction, Action
- Available on Criterion Channel, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Vudu, Amazon Video, YouTube
Shiri
(쉬리)
Two South Korean special agents must stop a North Korean plot involving potent explosives while facing a deadly female sniper.
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- Korea • 1999
- Director Kang Je-gyu
- Cast Han Suk-kyu, Choi Min-sik, Yunjin Kim, Song Kang-ho, Park Yong-woo, Kim Su-ro
- Genre Action, Adventure, Drama, Thriller
- Available on Vudu
Dracula A.D. 1972
The Count is back, with an eye for London's hotpants . . . and a taste for everything
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- United Kingdom • 1972
- Director Alan Gibson
- Cast Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing, Stephanie Beacham, Christopher Neame, Michael Coles, Marsha Hunt
- Genre Horror
- Available on Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Vudu, Amazon Video, YouTube
Boat People
(投奔怒海)
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Hong Kong • 1982
- Director Ann Hui
- Cast George Lam Chi-Cheung, Season Ma, Cora Miao, Andy Lau, Tung-Sheng Chang, Qi Mengshi
- Genre Drama
- Available on Criterion Channel
Nostalgia for the Light
(Nostalgia de la luz)
Where do we come from?
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- France, Germany, Chile • 2010
- Director Patricio Guzmán
- Cast Gaspar Galaz, Lautaro Núñez, Luís Henríquez, Miguel, Victor Gonzalez, Vicky Saaveda
- Genre Documentary
- Available on OVID, Apple TV, Amazon Video, Kanopy
Handsome Antonio
(Il bell'Antonio)
Dashing Antonio faces scandal when it's revealed he has yet to consummate the year-long marriage to his beloved wife.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Italy, France • 1960
- Director Mauro Bolognini
- Cast Marcello Mastroianni, Claudia Cardinale, Pierre Brasseur, Rina Morelli, Tomas Milian, Fulvia Mammi
- Genre Drama
- Available on Criterion Channel
Foster
A family opens its door to a miracle.
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- United Kingdom • 2011
- Director Jonathan Newman
- Cast Toni Collette, Ioan Gruffudd, Maurice Cole, Richard E. Grant, Anne Reid, Hayley Mills
- Genre Comedy, Drama, Family
- Available on Xumo Play
Solo
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- France, Belgium • 1970
- Director Jean-Pierre Mocky
- Cast Jean-Pierre Mocky, Sylvie Bréal, Anne Deleuze, René-Jean Chauffard, Éric Burnelli, Henri Poirier
- Genre Crime, Drama
- Available on No streaming locations found.
Hibiscus Town
(芙蓉镇)
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- China • 1987
- Director Xie Jin
- Cast Jiang Wen, Liu Xiaoqing, Xu Songzi, Zhang Guangbei, Zheng Zaishi, Zhu Shibin
- Genre Drama, History, Romance
- Available on No streaming locations found.
The Attorney
(변호인)
A successful attorney defends a student activist facing prosecution.
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- Korea • 2013
- Director Yang Woo-seok
- Cast Song Kang-ho
- Genre Drama, History
- Available on Rakuten Viki, Kocowa, Vudu, Amazon Video, FlixFling, Tubi TV, Pluto TV, Freevee,
Belluscone: A Sicilian Story
(Belluscone - Una storia siciliana)
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Italy • 2014
- Director Franco Maresco
- Cast Salvatore De Castro, Marcello Dell'Utri, Ciccio Mira, Valentino Picone
- Genre History, Documentary
- Available on No streaming locations found.
Ode To My Father
(국제시장)
A young boy's promise to his father during the Korean War guides his choices over a lifetime.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Korea • 2014
- Director JK Youn
- Cast Hwang Jung-min, Yunjin Kim, Oh Dal-su, Jung Jin-young, Jang Young-nam, Ra Mi-ran
- Genre Drama
- Available on Tubi TV
Ten Years
(十年)
Five Hong Kong stories, one uncertain future.
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- Hong Kong • 2015
- Director Ng Ka-Leung
- Cast Leung Kin-Ping, Catherine Chau, Ng Siu-Hin, Yau Hok-Sau, Liu Kai-Chi
- Genre Drama
- Available on Apple TV, Google Play Movies, YouTube
1987: When the Day Comes
(1987)
In 1987, college student and activist Park Jong-Chul dies in police custody — the truth of his inhumane interrogation sparks public outrage.
- Korea • 2017
- Director Jang Joon-hwan
- Cast Kim Yoon-seok, Ha Jung-woo, Yoo Hae-jin, Kim Tae-ri, Park Hee-soon, Lee Hee-jun
- Genre Drama, History, Thriller
- Available on Google Play Movies, Amazon Video, YouTube
Midnight Runners
(청년경찰)
Forget the sense of duty and justice!
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Korea • 2017
- Director Kim Joo-hwan
- Cast Park Seo-jun, Kang Ha-neul, Sung Dong-il, Park Ha-sun, Go Joon, Cho Joon
- Genre Action, Comedy, Crime
- Available on Fandor Amazon Channel, Hoopla, Kocowa, Rakuten Viki, Amazon Video, Fandor, Tubi TV, The Roku Channel, AsianCrush, Filmzie, Freevee, Cineverse, Midnight Pulp, Xumo Play, KoreaOnDemand, Popflick
I Can Speak
(아이 캔 스피크)
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Korea • 2017
- Director Kim Hyun-seok
- Cast Na Moon-hee, Lee Je-hoon, Seong Yu-bin, Yeom Hye-ran, Lee Sang-hee, Jeong Yeon-joo
- Genre Drama, Comedy
- Available on No streaming locations found.
The Man Standing Next
(남산의 부장들)
The 1970s Koreagate scandal is explored as the KCIA faces competing power struggles amidst a flurry of illegal operations.
- Korea • 2020
- Director Woo Min-ho
- Cast Lee Byung-hun, Lee Sung-min, Kwak Do-won, Lee Hee-jun, Kim So-jin
- Genre Drama
- Available on Peacock, AsianCrush, Midnight Pulp, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Vudu, Amazon Video, YouTube, Tubi TV, Pluto TV, VUDU Free, Freevee, Plex,
Comidark Films: In Between
(Karakomik Filmler: 2 Arada)
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- Turkey • 2019
- Director Cem Yılmaz
- Cast Cem Yılmaz, Zafer Algöz, Cem Davran, Ozan Güven, Uraz Kaygılaroğlu, Cemre Ebuzziya
- Genre Drama, Comedy
- Available on Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Amazon Video, YouTube
Based on true events, A Taxi Driver is an emotional story of an ordinary man turned hero, a man caught between his simple needs and a greater cause. It is so heartwarming to follow Man-seob's character development throughout this film.