A narcissistic, self-centered weatherman finds himself in a time loop on Groundhog Day, and the day keeps repeating until he gets it right.
I remember seeing “Groundhog Day” at the cinema in Dublin in the summer of 1993. Bill Murray had always been an actor I admired ever since I saw him in one of my all-time favorite movies, “Meatballs.” Of course, more comedies ensued; “Stripes,” “Ghostbusters,” “Scrooged,” “Ghostbusters II,” and “Quick Change,” as well as a serious turn in “The Razor’s Edge,” a very overlooked Bill Murray film and performance.
With “Groundhog Day,” he reunited with Harold Ramis, who previously directed him in “Caddyshack” and who starred alongside him in “Stripes” and the two Ghostbusters films. The story focuses on Phil Connors (Murray), an egotistical, self-absorbed television weatherman who is tasked with returning to Punxsutawney, Philadelphia, for his annual coverage of the Groundhog Day festivities, along with his new producer, Rita Hanson (Andie MacDowell), who he has the hots for, and cameraman Larry (Chris Elliott). Phil treats everyone around him as inferiors, but when he starts reliving Groundhog Day over and over with no end in sight, he gradually begins to see the effects of his selfish behavior and realizes the time loop is a way for him to evolve into a better person, especially if he plans on winning Rita over.
Most films that deal with time loops, “Edge of Tomorrow,” “Happy Death Day,” and “Source Code,” to name but a few, explain, not just to the characters onscreen but to the audience as well, what is causing said time loop, so we understand the situation, but in “Groundhog Day,” writers Danny Rubin and Harold Ramis never once hint at what is causing Phil to relive Groundhog Day repeatedly. He is very unlikeable when we first meet him, but from the outset, we also know, because it is Bill Murray, that he will change, and when he does, when he becomes the absolute best version of himself, the time loop will end, and he’ll start living life normally again. I liked that it was never explained; instead, it was left up to our own imagination. On the other hand, it’s fun imagining what you would do if you were in the same circumstance.
Murray has never been better. He plays the obnoxious, unpleasant Phil just as well as the affable, endearing, and magnetic Phil. Two sides of the same coin, but of course, we all prefer the goofy and loveable Murray because that’s who we all grew up with. As Phil begins his journey to redemption, there is one especially heartbreaking scene where he encounters an old homeless man on the cold Punxsutawney streets. Day after day, he brings him to the local diner and lets him order whatever he wants, hoping that a full stomach and much-needed warmth will save him, but in the end, the man passes away from natural causes. When he asks a nurse at the hospital how he died, she simply says, “Sometimes, people just die.” Murray pulls off the scene with pathos, and we know he is indeed on his way to absolution.
Andie MacDowell, Chris Elliott, Stephen Tobolowsky, and the rest of the cast inject the script with enthusiasm and vitality, playing wonderfully off Murray and each other. It’s sad to learn that Ramis and Murray clashed throughout filming, and once the movie was completed, the two never spoke to each other again for over 20 years, until the final days before Ramis’ death in 2014. Murray was interested in a more contemplative film about the underlying theme of people repeating their lives out of fear of change, while Ramis wanted to focus on the redeeming power of love. Their last collaboration would become a movie that is loved and remembered by millions worldwide and proved that both men, despite their grievances, delivered some of the best work of their collective careers working together.
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