The movie centers around a self-absorbed individual that plays a weather forecaster on television. He is on assignment at a quaint little town to tape the Groundhog Day events. The problem is something unusual happens. He get to relive this day again, and again, and again, and again, and….
The whole idea in my mind is that the lead is caught in a type of purgatory. This man is not a nice man in the beginning of the movie. He is merely looking after his own self-interests. Most of the movie is about him doing things for himself. And once he realizes that there are no consequences for his actions then it gets really interesting, as well as funny. I always felt that he was stuck in the town for around a year in this movie. But after listening to the commentary/featurette the idea of him living this way for a thousand years was thrown around. One thousand years?! Seems like he would go mad. Either way the amount of time he spent in this little town is not clear.
The main character is Phil Connors played by Bill Murray. I feel he does an outstanding job of creating this ever-changing character. The correct emotions come out at the right time and the emotions (related to the circumstances) just seem to fit. The character starts off cocky and arrogant, then moves to anger, then fear, frustration, etc. The character is changing emotionally throughout the movie. And each change adds a different element to the scene even though everything else stays the same. I don’t know what else to say other then it just works.
The supporting actors are Andie McDowell and Chris Elliott. Andie McDowell plays the girl next door. Sweet, charming, innocent, caring, warm, friendly, etc. She is not supermodel quality but she is beautiful. The character has a very charming, warm personality that endears herself to the audience. But underneath this warm personality is a quiet intelligence. She certainly is not a dumb individual, emotionally or intellectually. This makes her decisions in the middle and end of the movie all that more believable. Andie does an outstanding job in my opinion. Chris Elliott really took a backseat in this movie and I feel it was a good move. Without him, and his occasional witty remark, the movie would have fallen flat at points. But too much of him would have equally harmed the movie. This is not a bust your gut comedy but more of a playful comedy. I think it was the perfect balance and Chris should be proud of the job he did. The rest of the acting is believable and doesn’t leave any pieces missing that I see. It is just people acting like real people. But there are some actors that take their characters to a whole new level. Take for instance the two drunks. That is a classic and pivotal scene. Without these two actors that scene would have fallen flat too. Every time I see that scene I just laugh, after all wouldn’t you do the same thing if you were in that situation? Heck ya!
The editing I think is superb. The way it is strung together you really get the idea that he is truly repeating this day over and over again. And what takes only a matter of seconds is edited in such a way that you realized that days & weeks have gone by. And even though you see several of the same scenes, it is edited in such a way that the repetition isn’t boring or tiring.
As far as the costuming, special effects, stunts, make-up, etc are concerned; they are all well done in the movie. While nothing special, each of these jobs is done perfectly in that these areas make the viewer believe they are really living in this small town day after day after day. I haven’t been able to see any continuity issues or any slips in this area either.
Who is this for? Other than very young sheltered children, this movie is for everyone. It is a neat story with comedy added in here and there.
Rating PG
Additional material -Audio commentary by Harold Ramis -Trailers -Filmographies of the 3 key actors and director -Featurette- 24 minutes long and it is very informative.
The key players Director: Harold Ramis. Story by: Danny Rubin. Screenplay by: Danny Rubin & Harold Ramis. Music: George Fenton Produced by: Trevor Albert.
Product DetailsOriginal Title:Groundhog Day (Special 15th Anniversary Edition)Actors: Andie MacDowell - Bill Murray - Chris ElliottCondition: USEDFor...More at iNetVideo.com
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