Rent Groundhog Day on Amazon Video (paid link)
Written by: Danny Rubin (story by), Danny Rubin and Harold Ramis (screenplay by)
Directed by: Harold Ramis
Starring: Bill Murray, Andie MacDowell, Chris Elliott, Stephen Tobolowsky, Brian Doyle-Murray
Rated: PG
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Plot
A narcissistic, self-centered weatherman finds himself in a time loop on Groundhog Day.
Verdict
It's a classic that manages to probe comedy, morality, and religion. What would you do with all the time in the world? Phil goes through various stages of grief before finally unlocking the secret to life. That secret is kindness and caring. More than that, this movie knows exactly what to show. There's no way to credibly explain the why, so it smartly doesn't. We don't know how long Phil is in this loop, but based on the skills he's learned, it must have been quite a long time - decades if not centuries. Like Phil, we all selfishly wish for more time, but what Phil learns is how to best use that time.
Watch It.
Review
This is such an amazing concept. What if a day repeated endlessly, and that knowledge could be retained? There's a reason this concept has been copied so many times. It's ingenious. While this movie isn't the first example of a time loop, it has become synonymous with the concept because it does it so well. We're never told why, though an early draft provided an explanation. I'm glad it was deleted. Movies often feel the need to over explain, especially with wild concepts like this. The strength is in not succumbing to the desire.
Weatherman Phil (Bill Murray) is tasked with going to Punxsutawney for the groundhog. He's completely disinterested, eager to leave the assignment and town, but he's snowed in. The next morning Phil realizes something is wrong immediately, but he doesn't know what or why. He's the only one that seems to realize or remember they've already experienced this day. It happens again, and Phil is terrified by another redux. He becomes desperate, going to drastic measures to stop the endless day.
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| Bill Murray plays Phil |
The core question is so intriguing. What would you do with infinity, all the time in the world? Phil uses it for selfish reasons like getting a date and robbing an armored car. How long did it take to learn that choreography? He's had to be at this for years. The bank robbery must have taken hundreds of chances and that's probably a low estimate. We see him angry and depressed, part of his journey of the five stages of grief. On one occasion he's learned all the answers to jeopardy. We see Phil acclimate, learning from mistakes though he still doesn't understand why. He tries to work his charms on Rita (Andie MacDowell), trying to get their date 'right' time and again to impress her. He gets one step further, but he's trying to be who she wants and not who he is. Phil creates this narrative to woo her. He's infatuated. While he's spent weeks, months, or even years with her, she's only spent one day with him. He's trying to force it.
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| Andie MacDowell, Bill Murray play Rita, Phil |
Phil becomes despondent, looking for a way out. He even steals the groundhog. We only see a small fraction of what Phil experiences. Any one success was probably met with dozens of failures. He opens up to Rita about his experience, and she believes him after he can prove it. Phil mentions it took him six months to master flipping cards. If he spent that long on something so mundane, the bank robbery must have taken decades. How long did it take to learn everything about everyone in the town, every event?
There's an evolution for Phil's plight punctuated with comedy. He finds a way to turn Ned away after so many failed attempts, but then there's the sequence where he finds a homeless old man and tries to save him in vain. Despite Phil's feelings of power and invulnerability, he can't save the guy. Phil started this movie as arrogant and self-centered. Towards the end he's become selfless and helpful. He finds a way to impact everyone in this town in just a single day. While that's what we see on screen, there's so much more happening off screen. Playing the piano as he does would take ten to fifteen years of intense practice.
It's difficult not to read religion or morality into this story. Was Phil in some kind of purgatory until he achieved enlightenment? It wasn't just about getting the perfect day with Rita. Phil long abandoned that. He achieved the perfect day when he managed to positively impact the lives of everyone in the town. Phil was incredibly selfish in the beginning, and by the end he's kind and considerate. The repitition stopped when Phil improved himself. Author Jim Rohn may have said it best, "One person caring about another represents life's greatest value."
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