THE BISHOP'S WIFE vis a vis TAXI DRIVER

I realize it's an odd comparison, but I think there are enough similarities between these two films that perhaps the classic 1970's night journey, TAXI DRIVER, is the heir-apparent/re-make/inspired by/direct descendant of 1947's THE BISHOP'S WIFE.

Let's look at the similarities. First, Dudley and Travis Bickle are both supernatural visitors come to New York City (at least, that's the suggested setting in BISHOP) to help a lost soul looking for salvation. For Dudley, he sponsors Henry and for Travis it's Iris (Jodie Foster). In the end, both Henry and Iris are rescued by their saviors; and in both cases the wisdom the protagonists provide is hard-fought because both Dudley and Travis are flawed characters in transition, and what they teach their beneficiaries is gleaned only after they go through their own struggles to find their place in the universe. Also, both Dudley and Travis are diverted by women who in the end they can never have. Dudley's attraction to Julia and Travis' attraction to Betsy (Cybill Shepherd) are doomed to fail because the heroes must fulfill their missions. We see love bloom between these two sets of characters in romantic restaurant scenes, only to be ultimately spurned because of the women's greater love for the men already in their lives (for Julia it's Henry, for Betsy it's Sen. Charles Pallantine).

True, Travis is not "sent" to save Iris, but he makes it his mission to do so, and thus, that becomes the thrust of the narrative, which is an echo of Dudley's mission in BISHOP. Also, in both cases, there's a scene where the protagonists are jealous enough of their "rivals" that they threaten to kill them: Dudley warns Henry that if he wished to he could smite the minister with a bolt of lightning while Travis, carrying a concealed weapon at a political rally, is a threat to kill Pallantine. Additionally, both protagonists help other people in need along the way: Dudley helps a boys' choir, Mrs. Hamilton, and ironically, a taxi driver. In Travis' case, he rescues a bodega owner who's being robbed at gunpoint and lends an ear to a passenger intent on murdering his unfaithful wife and her lover.

In the end, once Dudley and Travis have finished their "assignments," they move on; Dudley to another planet and Travis to his next taxi ride. There is a difference, however, as the people Dudley touches forget about him as soon as he leaves the scene; Travis, on the other hand, is celebrated for saving Iris in newspapers and magazines and duly thanked by Iris' parents. Also of note, both Julia and Iris are friends of wizened old gentlemen who've known them for a long time and who have keys to their secret hearts. For Julia, it's the Professor, for Iris it's Sport (Harvey Keitel). In both cases when our protagonists meet these older gentlemen there is a sense of dis-trust. The relationship between them in each case boils down to a talisman. The Professor gives Julia a Roman coin which winds up in Dudley's hands while Sport gives Travis a crumpled twenty dollar bill. In both cases, just before the end of the film, the money is returned. Dudley gives the Professor a lesson in the meaning of the coin and likewise, Travis teaches Sport a lesson after he gives him back the $20.

I'm sure there are more similarities between these two films, but it would require a fresh viewing of each film. So, if anyone else has something to add, I'm all ears.