Groundhog Day on its own is a somewhat mundane holiday. Don’t get me wrong, it is fun when it comes to knowing if the Groundhog sees its shadow or not, but there is really not much that happens afterward depending on where you live. In my honest opinion, the 1993 Bill Murray classic Groundhog Day made February 2nd a day to remember as it’s not only funny but also deep in ways you’d never expect a movie like this to pull off.
Weatherman Phil Conners is a grumpy and self-centered person who is off to Punxsutawney Pennsylvania to record the story of the Groundhog for the fourth time this year. Phil is not pleased about this as he has bigger plans for himself and would rather not partake in the small town of Punxsutawney and its festivities on Groundhog day. His co-worker Rita however is all the most excited to go to Punxsutawney and even though Phil is resentful to work with her she remains to keep a positive attitude. After filming the groundhog, Phil tries to leave as soon as possible but the van gets caught in a storm while leaves Phil stuck in Punxsutawney. the next morning Phil wakes up only to realize that he’s living Groundhog Day over and over again meaning he’s stuck in Punxsutawney. At first, he tries to make the best out of it by doing some selfish and out of context things. Soon though, he realizes that no matter how hard he tries he can’t break out of this curse and learns how to better himself while learning about what it means to love someone when it comes to Rita
The story is simple in its premise but complex in its morals and characterizations. The film takes the idea of reliving the same day over and over again and uses every opportunity it can when it comes to the jokes and ideas. The jokes are hilarious and on point. It’s a perfect balance between over the top silliness and down to earth hyperbolic humor. However, those are the aspects of the movie that make it good, what makes the movie a true classic is how deep it goes with its theming and morals. Bill Murray’s character is one of the main reasons this movie works and his overall pessimistic outlook during the majority of the movie is balanced greatly and his character development throughout the movie is believable and even kinda sad at times. There is also a great romance that blossoms between Phil and Rita throughout the film but it’s handled in a way that many other romances haven’t tried yet before which can lead to the film’s sweetest and most tragic of moments.
The cinematography captures the feeling of being in a small town as well as the beauty of the winter season. The shots of Punxsutawney start out cold and gray at first but then get brighter and lovely as the film plays on. There are some impressive shots that are masterful in filmmaking and occasionally you’ll get to see some action-esque sequences from time to time. One thing that is very impressive for Groundhog Day is how they have to shoot the same scene over and over again depending on what the script calls for. It could be possible that Bill Murray as well as the other actors were free to adlib while still keeping the overall idea in context depending on the scene. It almost feels a blooper reel the way the movie is put together and I can only imagine the cut content that didn’t make it into the final movie. The music has a mix of normal orchestrated music and some added copyrighted tunes. The orchestrated music is beautiful especially in the more romantic moments and much like the story, it changes along with the character development of Phil Conners. Then there are the copyrighted tunes that can come across as catchy or just plain fun to hear.
Groundhog Day may be just another average holiday but it has produced an awesome Bill Murray classic that has a ton of laughs but also a ton of thought-provoking material that make this more than just a laugh a minute movie. I have made it a tradition to watch this film each and every February 2nd and if you’ve seen this movie, chances are that you might agree with that statement.
(Final Grade: A)