With it being Groundhog Day today, I only figured it would be appropriate to review the 1993 comedy movie by the same name. This film stars Bill Murray, Andie MacDowell, Chris Elliott, Stephen Tobolowsky, and Brian Doyle-Murray. It is also directed by Harold Ramis, who, coincidentally, has a part in this film as a Neurologist.
This film is about a TV meteorologist named Phil Connors (played by Bill Murray), who, along with his producer Rita (played by Andie MacDowell), and their cameraman Larry (played by Chris Elliott), work for the fictional Pittsburgh television station, WPBH-TV9. Since it is February 2, Groundhog Day, Phil and his team must travel to Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania in order to catch the tradition and to find out if Punxsutawney Phil does indeed see his shadow or not. Unfortunately, he finds himself reliving the same day, February 2, Groundhog Day, over and over.
One aspect of the filmmaking which I liked was the performance of Bill Murray. He is one of the funniest actors I have ever seen. I like his performances because it seems like he doesn’t have to go over the top to be funny. It seems like he can just be himself and be funny. It was a very good job by Bill Murray as he easily stole the show in this movie.
The other aspect of the filmmaking which I thought was really incredible and creative was the direction they decided to take this film in. Instead of it just being a straight movie where we find out of Punxsutawney Phil sees his shadow, we get a man who is forced to live the same day over and over again. Imagine if you could go back in time and right a wrong. I think one of the funniest moments in this film is when Phil ran into Ned Ryerson (played by Stephen Tobolowsky), over and over.
My overall reaction to this film is that I absolutely loved it. It ranks as one of the funniest movies I have ever seen as well as one of the overall best movies I have ever seen. Bill Murray is a delight in this film. This is a great comedy movie for the whole family to enjoy. Finally, this movie would be great for a Psychology class as it has to deal with one man’s struggle of living the same day over and over. But, it does it in a lighthearted way where on one hand, you feel sorry for poor old Phil, but on the other hand, it’s hilarious as he gets to do the one thing we can never do in real life, which is getting that second chance at a first impression.
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