Groundhog Day (1993)

Genre: Comedy

Directed by: Harold Ramis

Starring: Bill Murray, Andie MacDowell, Chris Elliott

Running time: 101 minutes

In this fantasy comedy classic, Bill Murray plays Phil Connors, an arrogant and misanthropic TV weatherman from Pittsburgh who is sent for a fourth year in row to cover the annual Groundhog Festival, in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. This time, he is accompanied by his cameraman Larry and the station’s new producer, Rita Hanson (Andie MacDowell). Phil’s day at the festival is the day from hell, and he just does not want to be there. Unfortunately for him, there is some kind of spell on him and he starts reliving that same exact day in his life over and over again.

Long before he started dabbling into serious roles, with great success I might add, Bill Murray was already great at being funny on screen. Groundhog Day is one of the finer early examples of his big screen capabilities as far as comedy goes.

This 1993 film offers a good amount of comedy and of stuff to reflect upon. Some of the comic relief is tad slapstick or exaggerated, but everything is in the right dosage here. There is a good lesson to take out of this movie, which is the importance of having the right priorities in your life.

The chemistry between Murray and MacDowell is great here, with the both of them pulling their weight and more in the deal. Chris Elliott’s character is more secondary, but he does the job when needed on screen, mostly for comic relief.

Phil Connors is the type of movie character I really like: Deeply flawed, but with great qualities, hidden deep down. I have seen this title many times before and I probably will again down the line. This is a movie that needs to be seen at least once.

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