Groundhog Day (1993) Review

Groundhog Day (1993)

Groundhog Day follows Phil, a cynical weatherman, who, like every other year, finds himself in Punxsutawney to report about the annual Groundhog Day, only to find himself reliving the same day over and over again. 

Something about Bill Murray playing cynical TV guys, forced to learn the err of their ways, on what is usually a cheery holiday just fits, honestly, as evidenced by this and Scrooged. What differentiates Groundhog Day however, aside from penning a name to the deja vu-esque days that never seem to stop repeating themselves, is the wide range of events it puts us through in order to make its point. Starting out as just a bad day, made worse by the blizzard that would strand them in Punxsutawney, there’s a fascinating progression that takes place as the days start repeating themselves. Obviously there’s disbelief, then careless anarchy, attempts at swaying the women, learning, learning, learning, putting the moves on Rita and getting rejected over and over again, suicide, lots of suicide, and then, and only then does Phil come to terms with it all and settles on becoming the good person we all have the capabilities of being, if it weren’t for our own, selfish, contemptuous thoughts and actions. 

In his time in Groundhog Day (which Ramis describes as nearly 10 years), Phil learns to care, to love, and to just be himself, instead of lying his way to get there. It’s only then, can he win over Rita and break the endless cycle of days, brought on by his own egocentric ways. 

We get a wonderfully zany cast, starring Robin Duke, Marita Geraghty, Stephen Tobolowsky, Brian Doyle-Murray, Chris Elliot, Andie MacDowell, and Bill Murray. Murray really covers every base in this one, bordering on hilarious, psychotic, predatory, loving, and even omnipotent, as his grasp on life inside Groundhog Day is constantly changing for the better or worse. 

Groundhog Day, directed by Harold Ramis, is a timeless holiday classic that perfectly captures the wacky essence of small town America through the lens of a man who just wants to leave but is forced to love it, and it’s people, in the end. 

8.3/10