Quartile rating: 5.5/10 · 1 rating
A gang of thieves calling themselves the Santa Claus Gang are wreaking havoc, and the police can't keep up. Police Captain Gilbert is distracted by a Chinese reporter writing a story on his squad, and taxi driver Daniel is in the midst of a relationship crisis. After a string of mistakes in which the thieves outsmart the police time and time again, Daniel and his super-taxi pitch in.
Taxi 3 is a largely by-the-numbers entry in the French action-comedy franchise, offering little evolution from its predecessors. The Santa Claus Gang gimmick provides a mild seasonal novelty but the plot remains formulaic — bumbling cops, a wisecracking cabbie, and a string of heists. Acting is serviceable but uninspired, with Samy Naceri and Frédéric Diefenthal going through familiar motions. Cinematography is competent but unremarkable for the genre. The ending resolves predictably with little dramatic tension. Across the board, the film sits squarely in below-to-average territory, fitting its middling reputation.