I recently (and belatedly) saw Taxi Driver for the first time in its entirety. I has previously seen clips and read articles about it. I was impressed with the images of the "beast" (as in "beauty and the __"), and that of the "noble savage" which permeate the film. That led me to compare the film to KING KONG in which an equally noble (but less articulate) "beast" dominates another vulnerable blond (Fay Wray, not Jodie Foster).It seemed to me that the major difference in subtext between the two films is that KONG dies and TRAVIS lives. As we know: Taxi Driver stirred awful emotions in John Hinckley. What may be less well known is that King Kong is said to have done the same for the late (and unlamented) Adolph Hitler. Finally, my question to the group; Do these two films contain emotional appeals of unique strength to disturbed/evil males? If so, what are those appeals? Please understand I would not propose to censor either film, even if the appeals were obvious and direct. I simply want to understand. Many thanks for your thoughtful responses. Sincerely, Peter S. Latham ---- To signoff SCREEN-L, e-mail [log in to unmask] and put SIGNOFF SCREEN-L in the message. Problems? Contact [log in to unmask]