Iris quotes from Taxi Driver (1976)

Travis

Are you really twelve and a half?

Listen mister, it's your time. Fifteen minutes ain't long. When that cigarette burns out, your time is up. [Iris sits on the edge of the sofa and begins undressing]

Travis

How old are you? You won't tell me? What's your name?

Easy.

Travis

That's not any kind of name.

That's easy to remember.

Travis

Yeah, but what's your real name?

I don't like my real name.

Travis

Now what's your real name?

Iris.

Travis

Well, what's wrong with that? That's a nice name.

Huh! That's what you think. [Iris begins to remove her top]

Travis

No, don't do that. Don't do that. Don't you remember me? Remember when you got into a taxi, it was a checkered taxi. You got in and that that guy Matthew came by and he said he wanted to take you away. He pulled you away.

I don't remember that.

Travis

You don't remember any of that?

No.

Travis

Well. that's all right. I'm gonna get you out of here.

So we'd better make it or Sport will get mad. So how do you want to make it?

Travis

I don't want to make it. Who's Sport?

Oh that's Matthew. I call him Sport. [She stands up and begins unbuckling the belt on his pants] You want to make it like this?

Travis

Listen, uh, listen, hey, can I tell you somethin'. But you're the one that came into my cab. You're the one that wanted to get out of here.

Well, I must have been stoned.

Travis

Why, what do you mean? Do they drug you?

Oh come off it, man.

Travis

What are you doin'?

Don't you want to make it?

Travis

No, I don't want to make it. I want to help you.

Well, I could help you. [Iris reaches for his pants again, but he pushes her back onto the sofa]

Travis

Damn, man. Goddamn it. Shit, man. What the hell's the matter with you?

Mister, you don't have to make it mister.

Travis

Goddamn it. Don't you want to get out of here? Can't you understand why I came here?

I think I understand, uh. I tried to get into your cab one night and you want to come and take me away. Is that it?

Travis

Yeah, but don't you want to go?

I can leave anytime I want to.

Travis

Well then, what about that one night?

Look, I was stoned. That's why they stopped me. 'Cause when I'm not stoned, I got no place else to go. So they just, uh, protect me from myself.

Travis

Well, I don't know. I don't know. OK, I tried.

I understand, and it means somethin', really.

Travis

Oh look, can I see you again?

Ha, ha, that's not hard to do.

Travis

No, I don't mean like that. I mean, you know, regularly. This is nothing for a person to do.

All right. How about breakfast tomorrow?

Travis

Tomorrow when?

I get up at about one o'clock.

Travis

So long, Iris. See you tomorrow. Sweet Iris.

Why do you want me to go back to my parents? I mean they hate me. Why do you think I split in the first place? There ain't nothin' there.

Travis

Yeah, but you can't live like this. It's hell. Girls should live at home.

Didn't you ever hear of women's lib?

Travis

What do you mean 'women's lib'? You sure are a young girl. You should be at home now. You should be dressed up. You should be goin' out with boys. You should be goin' to school. You know, that kind of stuff.

Oh god, are you square.

Travis

Hey I'm not square. You're the one that's square. You're full of shit, man. What are you talkin' about? You walk out with those ****in' creeps and lowlifes and degenerates out on the street and you sell your, sell your little pussy for nothin' man. For some lowlife pimp - stands in a hall. I'm, I'm square? You're the one that's square, man. I don't go screw and **** with a bunch of killers and junkies the way you do. You call that bein' hip? What world are you from?

Who's a 'killer'?

Travis

That guy Sport's a killer. That's who's a killer.

Sport never killed nobody.

Travis

He killed someone.

He's a Libra.

Travis

He's a what?

I'm a Libra too. That's why we get along so well.

Travis

Looks like a killer to me.

I think that, that Cancers make the best lovers, but god, my whole family are air signs.

Travis

He's also a dope shooter.

So what makes you so high and mighty. Will you tell me that? Didn't you ever try lookin' in your own eyeballs in the mirror?

Travis

So what are you gonna do about Sport, that ol' bastard?

When?

Travis

When you leave.

I don't know. I just leave him, I guess.

Travis

You just gonna leave?

Yeah, they got plenty of other girls.

Travis

Yeah, but you just can't do that. What are you gonna do?

What do you want me to do? Call the cops?

Travis

What? The cops don't do nothin'. You know that.

Hey look. Sport never treated me bad. I mean he didn't beat me up or anything like that once.

Travis

But you can't allow him to do the same to other girls. You can't allow him to do that. He is the lowest kind of person in the world. Somebody's got to do something to him. He's the scum of the earth. He's the worst s-s-sucking scum I have ever, ever seen. You know what he told me about you? He called you names. He called you a little piece of chicken.

He doesn't, he doesn't mean that. I'll move up to one of them communes in Vermont.

Travis

I never seen a commune before, but I don't know, you know, I saw some pictures once in a magazine - didn't look very clean.

Well why don't you come to the commune with me?

Travis

Why not ****, come in a commune with you? Oh no.

Why not?

Travis

I don't, I don't go to places like that.

Oh come on, why not?

Travis

No, I don't get along with people like that.

Are you a Scorpion?

Travis

What?

That's it. You're a Scorpion. I can tell every time.

Travis

Besides, I gotta stay here.

Come on, why?

Travis

I got somethin' very important to do.

Oh, so what's so important?

Travis

Doin' somethin' for the government. Cab thing is just part-time.

Are you a narc?

Travis

Do I look like a narc?

Yeah. [laughing]

Travis

I am a narc.

God, I don't know who's weirder, you or me? Sure you don't want to come with me?

Travis

Well, I tell ya what I'm gonna do. I'm gonna give ya the money to go.

Oh no, look, you don't have to do that.

Travis

No, no. I want you to take it. I don't want ya to take anything from them. And I wanna do it. I don't have anything better to do with my money. I might be goin' away for a while.

I don't like what I'm doin,' Sport.

Sport

Oh baby, I never wanted you to like what you're doin'. If you ever liked what you're doing, you wouldn't be my woman.

You never spend any time with me anymore.

Sport

Why I got to attend to business baby. You miss your man, don't ya? I don't like to be away from you either. You know how I feel about you. I depend on you. I'd be lost without you. Don't you ever forget that - how much I need you. Come to me baby. Let me hold you. When I hold you close to me like this, I feel so good. I only wish every man could know what it's like to be loved by you... God, it's good so close. You know at times like this, I know I'm one lucky man. Touchin' a woman who wants me and needs me. That's the way you and I keeps it together.