Movie Review by Bill Rendall

Groundhog Day

If I had to nominate one movie as my favourite it would be Groundhog Day. It is a comedy, a fantasy, a romance and a moral tale of a cynical man's redemption. The movie stars Bill Murray in a role which initially appears similar to his role in Scrooged. The main problem with Scrooged is that Murray's character transformation is too forced to be convincing. The transformation is handled with more subtlety in Groundhog Day.

Groundhog Day is directed and co-written by Harold Ramis who had previously worked with Murray in a string of comedies such as Ghostbusters and Caddyshack. Ramis shows in Groundhog Day that he can make thoughtful movies as well as wacky comedies.

The setting is Punxsutawney, a town in Pennsylvania known for its annual ceremony in which a groundhog predicts how much longer winter will last. The movie was actually filmed in Woodstock, Illinois. You can see a sign that says Woodstock on a jewellery shop.

Bill Murray plays a weatherman who is reluctantly assigned the job of reporting on the ceremony for the fourth year in a row. The assignment becomes a nightmare for Murray when he finds himself in a time warp repeating one day over and over.

Early in the movie Murray goes out drinking with a couple of the locals and one of them comments that Murray is a "glass is half-empty man." The central theme of the movie is Murray becoming a "glass is half-full man" as he gradually realises that what has happened to him could be considered a blessing rather than a curse.

Groundhog Day is one of the few movies that I enjoy watching over and over. By doing this I can experience what Murray goes through. I have become familiar with the people of the town myself and recognise them in the background going through their daily life. Groundhog Day cleverly uses jump cuts to compress the passing of time.

Murray goes through boredom and depression as the day repeats. After squandering many days wallowing in self-pity he decides to turn his life around by helping others and learning new skills. He uses the gift of time to become an expert ice sculptor and pianist.

There is a great example of a sound bridge when Murray hears a piano piece on a radio. We then see him walking with purpose while the piano piece continues, seemingly as the non-diegetic soundtrack. He enters a piano teacher's house and it is implied that the piano piece is now a diegetic performance by a music student.

There is one scene late in the movie that hits a wrong note for me. Murray asks his cameraman about his personal life. I think the intent of the scene is to show that Murray is becoming a person who cares about others. However Murray's enquiry sounds perfunctory and he doesn't really appear to be interested in hearing his cameraman's answer.

I can forgive a minor flaw in an uplifting tale. No movie is perfect but Groundhog Day comes close. It works on multiple levels. Viewed superficially as a comedy it has many funny moments. There is a romance which slowly blossoms after Murray's failed attempts to shortcut the process through manipulation, but Murray is unconvincing as a romantic lead. The aspect of the movie that works best is the underlying optimistic moral message.

Director: Harold Ramis

Screenplay: Danny Rubin, Harold Ramis

Music: George Fenton

Further viewing:

It was inevitable that someone would remake Groundhog Day with the day changed to Christmas Day. There is a TV movie called Christmas Every Day which directly refers to Bill Murray's role in Groundhog Day. Although Christmas Every Day is not a great movie it is interesting to watch as a comparison.

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