No doubt, a lot of us probably suffer from the same old Groundhog Day syndrome at our jobs, don't we? You get to thinking, if I can predict something like this, why can't I predict the lottery numbers? The same crowd comes in, gets the same thing everyday, hands over the same money, you hand back the same change. Why do we tolerate this? Probably because the stability is easy on the soul. Or because we have no other choice.
Phil (Bill Murray) is a news reporter, sent out to the small town of Punxatawney, Pennsylvania to do a report on the "Groundhog Festival". Phil is no big fan of the groundhog legend, and not the biggest fan of winter, either. He gets just the right dose of both to make it a really crappy day for him. Not only this, but on the way home, the blizzard gets so intense that he, his producer Rita and cameraman Larry are forced to stay in Punxatawney an extra night.
Well, off to bed Phil goes, and the next morning, event by event, the day unfolds, turning out to be exactly identical to the day he had just experienced yesterday. He has to do the report all over again, no one else seems to notice that the day is repeating itself, and worst of all, he knows that the blizzard is coming and that they will never make it out of Punxatawney.
This movie relies less on the progression of a plot and plays out more like a series of comedy sequences than an actual movie. Phil's various reactions to situations, his experimental ways of dealing with each event or person, and his attempts to get to know his producer Rita. Phil has a longtime attachment to Rita that he has repressed for quite a while, hiding behind an exterior of arrogance and overconfidence.
As Phil rehearses his lines each day to Rita, Bill Murray does a good job acting the part of Phil who, in turn, is also acting out his predetermined lines to Rita. Phil is always more sincere the first time through, when he doesn't know what to expect as the result of his constant tweaking with the events of the day.
One of the most interesting parts of this movie is the development of Phil's character. The more he learns how to take advantage of his "eternity", the more he finds himself able to try out things he never tried before, such as helping a poor beggar on the street. In this seemingly endless time of exploration, Phil changes as a person, finding pleasure in helping others, where in a hurried life where there is never enough time, he may never have discovered the pleasure in giving.
The beggar on the street is one of the most intriguing parts of the movie. It is his destiny that he is going to pass away, and Phil goes through a series of attempts to save this poor beggar's life. He gives the guy his money one day, the "next" day, he brings the man into a restaurant and tries to feed him back to health. After enough failed attempts, Phil is left kneeling beside the man looking up to Heaven, knowing that even with eternity, you can't stop something if it's meant to happen.
The movie takes a very original concept and toys with it very well, bringing the audience to wonder just what they would do in that kind of situation.
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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