Taxi Driver (2021)

February 12, 2023

Our Take: A violent and gritty take on justice and vengeance. 

The Premise

Based on the webtoon, The Deluxe Taxi, by Carlos and Keukeu Jae Jin, Taxi Driver revolves around a team of vigilantes behind Rainbow Taxi, a premium taxi service company that provides special services for clients. Everyone on the team has a chilling backstory, having lost loved ones due to crimes committed by perpetrators who never received the punishment they deserved. To compensate for an unjust judicial system, they've channeled their energy towards an elaborate undercover operation that rescues victims of crimes and dishes out vengeance and justice against the perpetrators. 

Recruited by Rainbow Taxi and Bluebird CEO Jang Sung Chul (Kim Eui Sung), Kim Do Gi (Lee Je Hoon) is the company's star taxi driver. Formerly an officer in the Special Forces, Do Ki joins Rainbow Taxi shortly after discovering a serial killer murdered his mother. Alongside them are hacker Ahn Go Eun (Pyo Ye Jin) and mechanics Choi Kyung Goo (Jang Hyuk Jin) and Park Jin Eon (Bae Yoo Ram). 

Meanwhile, Seoul District Prosecutor Kang Ha Na (Esom) investigates several cases closely linked to Rainbow Taxi's services. As a civil servant, she is frustrated and angered by the team's lawless pursuits, leading to ongoing tensions between her role as a prosecutor and the Rainbow Taxi team. 

The Team

The camaraderie among the Rainbow Taxi team worked very well and weaved everyone's stories together seamlessly. Each person had their own strengths and weaknesses. But together, they acted as each other's support system and accomplished much more than they possibly could individually. With every new case, we get more insights into their traumatic pasts and how far they've come since then as a team. 

With a background as a former Special Forces soldier, Kim Do Gi is unstoppable in the field. He has high combat proficiency, superb driving skills, and an exceptional ability to blend into any environment. Whether he's doling out punishment to the bad guys or going undercover in an infiltration mission, he moves quickly and effectively. 

On the opposite end of the spectrum is Prosecutor Kang Ha Na. At first, she does everything by the book and insists on seeking justice through the law. Because of her narrow focus on solving cases legally, she is often at odds with the avengers team. But, as she gets more intertwined with Kim Do Gi and the rest of the team, she starts recognizing the shortcomings in the current judicial system and her role in contributing to an imperfect system. 

Ahn Go Eun shines as a quirky and charming hacker. Her scenes in the U-Data story arc in particular, bring more depth to her character and showcase her strengths. Despite going through a highly traumatic experience that paralyzes her from moving forward, she gradually musters up enough courage to get back up and keep fighting. 

Mechanics Choi Kyung Goo and Park Jin Eon balance out the team with their charm and sense of humor. Together, the duo patches up the premium taxis and adds all sorts of cool features to them. Having endured a similar traumatic experience, they have an unbreakable brotherhood. 

Rounding off the team is Jang Sung Chul, the mastermind behind the secret operation. His character is more nuanced as he runs both Bluebird, a non-profit that helps victims of crimes through the law, and also Rainbow Taxi, which helps victims by getting revenge for them. As the leader, he is acutely aware of the sacrifices required to run the operation, but his willpower to fight back empowers the team and the victims they save. 

While Baek Sung Mi (Cha Ji Yeon) is not on the team, she is an intriguing and layered villain with class who works closely with CEO Jang. As a female mobster, she leads multiple businesses, both legal and illegal, and commands a team of goons to do her every bidding. Flanked by her right-hand man, Goo Seok Tae (Lee Ho Chul), she's highly cunning and has a strong business acumen. 

A Broken Justice System

The justice system is designed to uphold the rule of law, protect victims, and deter/punish criminals. But, it often fails to do so and even ends up abusing the victims more. Taxi Driver highlights the glaring limitations of the current system and calls for state accountability. Rules like lack of evidence or statutes of limitations are meant to protect people's rights, hence the term "innocent until proven guilty." However, they act as double-edged swords. They also shield criminals and enable them to escape their punishments. Meanwhile, even if a criminal goes unpunished, the victims can never return to their past and must carry their pain, grief, and loss with them. 

The avengers team's proposed solution is revenge, while Kang Ha Na and her Deputy Chief Prosecutor want to follow the law. But by the end of the show, it's clear that neither revenge nor locking up criminals alone is the answer. As a society, we need to overhaul how we think about social justice and crime. Humans are fundamentally flawed and make mistakes, so everything from our laws, legislators, and social constructs has flaws. But that doesn't mean we can't adapt and learn to empathize with others to create the change we want to see. 

Understanding The Weight of a Crime

Throughout the show, the writers address a series of visceral and realistic social issues, ranging from mental health abuse, workplace harassment and exploitation, school bullying, coerced pornography, serial killers, organ trafficking, voice phishing, repressive justice, and more. While Taxi Driver may just be a show, the cases they cover are real and are currently happening all over the world and even in our neighborhoods.

As we see the trauma and suffering inflicted on the victims, we are reminded to be kind and more supportive of victims who go through these horrifying crimes. It's easy to blame the victims to avoid culpability and vulnerability. For example, in real life, we tend to blame victims for being careless when they fall for voice phishing scams or employees for not being able to stand up for themselves when they get harassed or bullied at work. 

But we must remember that the perpetrators, not the victims, are at fault. Even if the law fails to preserve victims' rights, that doesn't exonerate the perpetrators from the responsibility for committing the crimes in the first place. As CEO Jang reminds us, "Just because they're young, it doesn't mean that the weight of their crime is light. It doesn't matter who throws the stone, it still sinks." 

Is There Such Thing as Forgiveness?

Forgiveness and reconciliation are nice in theory but not always practical. For a victim, there is no going back. The pain and torment they carry will shape their lives from the moment the crime gets committed and become a part of their history. 

CEO Jang echoes this sentiment early on when he recruits Dong Ki. He tells Dong Ki, "I'll never forgive. Do you want to take revenge with me? Then... I won't lose to evil. I'll beat it in my own way. I'll collect all the trash around us and isolate them from the world forever. I will reform them." But, as the Rainbow Taxi team goes down the path of vengeance, they realize that as sweet as revenge may feel in the moment, it doesn't erase their past. 

Even though they are destroying the perpetrators, they still live in pain, unable to move forward from their traumatic experiences. As they exact their version of justice on the criminals, that only leads to more revenge and hate. Even though their experiences cannot be undone, they must try to overcome them and move on somehow because revenge is only perfected when you can go on living your life on your own. 

Final Thoughts

Taxi Driver is a dark and violent take on justice, but it's also addictive and compelling to watch. The show reminds us that the world is full of evil, but there is also a lot of good. In particular, Taxi Driver does a great job of diving into the different characters and cases, allowing room for growth and empathy for the characters. The tension between the prosecutors and the Rainbow Taxi team works well as both sides grapple with the same dilemmas of following the law vs. taking matters into their own hands. If this sounds like your cup of tea, I highly recommend giving Taxi Driver a chance.