I found out this past Groundhog Day that my wife had never seen the Bill Murray comedy Groundhog Day and immediately set about rectifying it. so i got her to drop Groundhog Day in her Netflix queue and last night we watched it. now i've seen Groundhog Day probably 20 or 30 times, since it always seems to be on TV, but i don't know how critically i have ever looked at it, because i never had an outlet or reason for writing down my thoughts about the movie before (thank you blogosphere) and because i have always been a huge Bill Murray fan, and love to watch his movies.
the first thing i wondered was that if Murray were offered a role like Phil Connors in Groundhog Day today, would he take it? i've been a real fan of his recent work, especially the stuff he did with Wes Anderson, Broken Flowers and of course, Lost in Translation (he got hosed for Best Actor that year.) i suppose that given his longtime friendship with director Harold Ramis he probably would have, but after watching Groundhog Day, i realized that the role of Phil Connors isn't much different than those that Murray has been playing lately--in fact it may be a blueprint for those roles of a comedian struggling to be taken seriously as an actor.
for those who haven't seen Groundhog Day, Phil Connors is a miserable bastard. he hates his job, and hates his life, creating a superiority complex for himself as a front for the disappointment he believes his life really has become. as part of being the weatherman at a small-market TV station in Pittsburgh, he has to trek annually to Punxsatawny, PA to watch Punxsatawny Phil come out and look for his shadow. as self absorbed as Phil is, he has no time to appreciate the small town charm of a place like Punxsatawny--he simply wants to finish his job and get out of town. and then a funny thing happens to Phil--a blizzard hits and he finds himself stuck in Punxsatawny, and what's worse, he finds himself reliving Groundhog Day ad infinitum.
i think when Groundhog Day came out, a lot of people didn't think of it as much more than a Bill Murray star vehicle, and may have dismissed it as a light comedy for a comedian who was known for making these sorts of movies. this, of course, dismisses the greater depth of the film totally. Harold ramis and screenwriter Danny Rubin masterfully craft the story of a self loathing man who is being forced by fate or the hand of God or what have you to relive the same day over and over again. what's more, in Murray they have found the perfect actor to play the part.
Certain elements of Murray's performance are indicative of his recent work--he was lauded for dialing down his performance in Lost in Translation, but i never heard any such accolades for his performance here. Murray only allows his character to go crazy when it makes sense to do so, such as when he realizes that none of the actions he takes on Groundhog Day will have any ramifications for tomorrow, because there is no tomorrow. but other than these obvious moments for physical comedy, Murray's performance is one that you would expect from someone if they had to live the same day over and over again--confusion, then excitement, then boredom, depression and despair and finally acceptance.
it is only when Phil accepts his fate that we learn the lesson of this film--that every day is a gift and that we should live life to the fullest. when Phil realizes that he can remember things from repeated day to repeated day, he at first uses the power for evil (he finds out information about an attractive woman and then uses it to sleep with her) but once he gets past the initial reaction of a self-loathing man to having to live the same day over and over again, he uses the gift he has been granted to improve himself--he learns how to play piano and to ice sculpt and he tries to be nice to other people and make their lives as worthwhile as he has found his own to be, stuck in Punxsatawny, PA.
if we could all get such a gift. Five Stars (out of Five)
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