Movie Review: Groundhog Day

Director: Harold Ramis
Starring: Bill Murray
Written: Story by Danny Rubin, Screenplay by Danny Rubin and Harold Ramis
Film Distributors:
Year: 1993

PLOT SUMMARY:


What would you do if you were stuck reliving the same day over and over again? How would you react? Would you go crazy? Would you try to kill yourself? Would you take advantage of the fact that everyone but you knew it was a time warp you were living in? Groundhog Day answers these questions and more. Bill Murray stars as Phil Connors, a arrogant weatherman who cannot stand the fact he is being sent to report about the annual Groundhog Day event. (For those who do not know about the holiday, Groundhog Day is celebrated every year on February 2nd and what is so special about this holiday is if the groundhog sees his shadow, winter will last for another six weeks. If the ground hog does not see his shadow, spring comes early for the year.)

For the most part, Connors cannot stand his assignment as he feels its degrading to go to some small town to cover something he believes to be trivial. After filming his piece, Connors and his small crew head home. However an unexpected blizzard traps Connors and his crew into Punxsutawney. This is only the beginning as Connors wakes up the next morning to find out it is Groundhog Day all over again. To Connors' amazement, nobody but him recognizes it's the same day all over again.

At first, Connors takes advantage of the time warp he is in by doing things differently every "day" he is reliving. For example, Connors learns all he can about one woman and then on the very next replay, he uses what he learned to impress the woman he saw the previous go around impressing her with what he learned from before. Other times Connors uses this to obtain money and other favors from the townspeople as he continues to relive each day over and over again. On some occasions, Connor even goes as far as to do random acts of kindness or even goes as far as to learn certain talents such as music and However, things become boring for Connors as he soon attempts suicide many times over only to wake up back in his hotel room safe and sound with no injuries whatsoever. Eventually Connors becomes associated with one of his crew members and develops a relationship with her and thanks to the constant repeats of the day, he learns all he can about her.


Groundhog Day ought to be a part of Bill Murray's greatest hits. The way he carries himself in this film is truly how any Average Joe forced to relive the same day over and over would feel. Thanks to Murray's convincing performance, the viewing audience can sympathize with his character and the many times he relives the the same day over and over. In fact, many people watching this film tend to develop bittersweet feelings because of the prospect of reliving a single day. While most will find Murray's antics hilariously funny, some may be lamenting over the fact that there is always a great day one wishes he or she could relive all over again.

OVERALL SCORE: 9

The writing, the acting, and Bill Murray make this film great in every way shape and form. A superb recommendation.