In a genre overpopulated by the trite and the meaningless this hugely original and important film stands head and shoulders above all it's competitors. Technically it's a romantic comedy as miserable, deadpan weatherman Phil Connors (Murray) attempts to woo kind and compassionate new producer Andie MacDowell while the two are on assignment together filming the annual Groundhog Day festival in Punxatawny.
However, the film is so much more due to it's (then) unusual and inventive idea of having Murray relive the same day over and over again with no one but him knowing this. At first he loves his new found 'power' and abuses it repeatedly in order to bed women, steal money and eventually focus on MacDowell as his ultimate conquest. Her constant rejections though, combined with depressing weather, the inability to get out of Punxatawny due to a storm he himself predicted wouldn't occur, and the sheer boredom of it all begin to drive him up the wall and into eventual redemption.
The film grips you from the get go with Murray's deadpan wisecracks and the bizarreness of the groundhog festival itself (actually a real event) drawing you into it's agreeable fold and posing the constant question of exactly what would YOU do given the chance to relive the same day over and over again. It's an intriguing question with many answers, most covered in the movie, and the philosophy behind it is also well-discussed but not overly blanketing. The supporting characters are all fantastic, the ever-dependable Stephen Tobolowsky especially wonderful as the nerdy, annoying Ned Ryerson who bumps into old-friend Connors every day and repeats the same sad but hilarious lines.
Every other character, whether they have one line or one thousand, are equally cosy and get across the true small-town nature of it all. The transformation of the lead character is also a delight and shows Murray's real flexibility as an actor, something old friend and colleague Harold Ramis is especially good at showing. He helms the film with a light touch at all times and makes the most of an excellent, witty script perfectly attuned to it's actors considerable talents. That the films's title is now a by-word in TV land for an episode featuring a repeating day is a superb compliment to a film which came out of nowhere and is still my favourite comedy of all time. |
