Variety (1983) - What If Travis Bickle Was A Woman?

When a naive girl named Christine (played by Sandy McLeod); down on her luck in 1980’s New York City; decides to take on a job at a porno cinema as a ticket taker; her self inflicted boredom leads her into a dangerous investigation.

1983’s Variety directed by Bette Gordon is most definitely the female take on Taxi Driver. As Travis Bickle is the creepy male counterpart misanthrope, who’s in need of a job, deciding to drive Taxi’s and taking people where they need to go, all the while noticing what he hates the most about New York City and taking his obsession of a woman to the idea that she’ll love him if he proves himself worthy. Christine on the other hand, is a more sympathetic character, she doesn’t look down on the New York City or anyone. Christine already knows her worth and through the female perspective Christine’s obsession with a man is about what’s wrong with the man himself as oppose proving herself to get the man to care. Variety paints a picture of a world where Christine’s innocence exposures the unfortunate cynicism of males and people alike. Christine gets preyed upon and gocked at just being a ticket taker at a cinema and has to watch her back constantly, while Travis Bickle is the predator and no matter how much he feels put upon, he’s still very much the one who would prey upon Christine. Ironically enough, Travis Bickle in Taxi Driver frequents a porno theatre daily as a place of solace, as Variety shows with Christine’s customers. In a way Travis Bickle spends his time waiting to control a woman as Christine spends her time trying not to be controlled by a man. Taxi Driver displays that power generally consumes men, as men being the main proprietors of power in the world. As Variety displays that women generally have love in their hearts, and would rather spend their time learning and understanding a person or system, than dominate it. Variety is the answer to the clumsy masculinity of Taxi Driver, and is much more heartbreaking and unique. Both though are great films exposing the common flaws of capitalism and the woes of loneliness, but out of the two, Variety was ahead of it’s time. 9/10. Check out Variety (1983).

• Maurice Jones