By JONAH GRAY
“Groundhog Day” (1993) is perhaps the only movie starring the Pennsylvania prophet, Punxsutawney Phil. Starring Andie MacDowell as Rita, Chris Elliot as Larry and Bill Murray as Phil Conners, this movie ranges from hilarious to depressing to heartwarming. It is definitely worth a watch this holiday season.
Conners is a cynical, self-centered weatherman for WBPH News in Pittsburgh. As an engaging TV personality, he’s the perfect choice to go to Punxsutawney for Groundhog Day. Much to Conners’ displeasure, it will be his fourth year reporting on the event. How will he make it to a major network if he’s wasting time interviewing a rodent?
On the morning of Feb. 2, Conners wakes up to the morning radio hosts declaring, “Okay, campers, rise and shine!” But Conners is not a happy camper. On his walk to Gobbler’s Knob, he makes sure to provide the lovely hotel host with sarcastic comments, fails to find any money in his pockets for the homeless man and refuses conversation with an old high school acquaintance, “Needlenose Ned.”
To Conners’ credit, I would also be pretty upset if “Ned the Head” tried to sell me life insurance before 7 a.m. Please don’t solicit me on sidewalks (or anywhere); I do not have time to hear about your great deals on life insurance, Ned.
Although the morning broadcast goes well, Conners has no time to stick around in podunk Punxsutawney.
He rallies Rita and Larry to pack up and head for Pittsburgh as fast as possible. To his despair, a snowstorm (that he failed to predict) stops him and his news crew from leaving town.
Conners thinks he is doomed with one more night in his own personal hell. Oh, boy, was he wrong.
The next day, the radio wakes him up at 6 a.m. to the exact broadcast as the day before. As the day progresses, it becomes clear that Conners is not suffering from déjà vu. It is, in fact, Groundhog Day again.
In “Groundhog Day,” we see what happens when a cynical, selfish man gets trapped in the same day.
This gimmick produced many memorable moments throughout the film, ranging from hilarious interactions with townsfolk to times when Conners goes off the rails — or, more precisely, drives directly on the rails toward an oncoming train.
Personally, I loved this movie. Murray’s performance was perfect. He managed to have the exact level of sarcasm and charisma you might expect from someone of self-proclaimed “celebrity status.” His performance in “Groundhog Day” isn’t rivaled by the other film where Murray faces off with a small, brown rodent, “Caddyshack.” Maybe it’s because Murray was sober enough to follow the script, but that’s not to say drug-fueled improvisation didn’t add to the funny moments in “Caddyshack.”
To conclude, the moral of this story is: Do not insult the great groundhog prophet, Punxsutawney Phil.
“Groundhog Day” is available for streaming on Philo, Sling TV and AMC+ subscriptions or on YouTube, Apple TV or Amazon Prime to rent.
