funny and thought-provoking

Rating: 8/10 (21 January 2014)

In films, we often see people who for one reason or another have to live their lives over, or some segment of it. In Groundhog Day, Bill Murray, who plays weatherman Phil, has to live over Groundhog Day in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. He doesn't want to go in the first place -- it's his fourth boring trip -- but he does. Because of an impending blizzard, they get stuck there. But Phil gets really stuck. He finds he can't leave the day, the town, or the people.
Every day at the same time, his alarm radio turns on and plays "I Got You Babe" by Sonny and Cher. And it's Groundhog Day. At first Phil is furious and takes it out on his broadcast about the ceremony, angering his associates (Andie McDowell and Chris Elliot) who didn't like him much to begin with. As the day continues to repeat itself, Phil finds different ways to deal with it. He picks up a woman, proposes to her so he can have sex with her, knowing that the next day the whole experience will be wiped out for her. He sees an old friend, an insurance man, puts up with him for so long, and then punches him.
Finally Phil figures out how to cope with the day, which he's resigned to re-live for the rest of his life.
Very funny film with Bill Murray in top form as Phil. Murray underplays the role, which somehow makes his lines funnier, dripping as they often are with sarcasm. He's very funny, and funniest when he's pretending to be sincere.
The best thing about Groundhog Day is that, like City Slickers, underneath the humor, it's quite serious. It's about how we choose to deal with the situation that we're in, what we would do if we could do a part of our life over, discovering who we are, and letting go of preconceived notions.
The film reminded me of something a teacher once said. If you were in an airport and there was an announcement that you would never be able to leave, every need would be met, but you would stay in the airport forever, what would happen? The teacher pointed out that initially everybody would be trying to figure a way out. It's only when you realize that there is no way out that there would be an opportunity for something wonderful to develop in that place, among those people.
Groundhog Day is a wonderful film, beautifully directed by Harold Ramis, who co-wrote the screenplay with Danny Rubin, that delivers a great message using humor. You'll probably never want to hear "I Got You Babe" again, though.