How 'Groundhog Day' became cultural canon

Bill Murray is forced to relive the same day over and over in 1993’s “Groundhog Day.” (Columbia Pictures/MovieStillsDB.com)

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"Groundhog Day"
Released Feb. 12, 1993
Directed by Harold Ramis
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It was only a few weeks ago when we celebrated Groundhog Day on the calendar. The holiday-inspired many people to talk about "Groundhog Day," the 1993 comedy starring Bill Murray. The movie, however, actually came out 10 days after the holiday during its original release. Since we're sticklers for release dates around here, that means our retrospective is also running behind the holiday. 

Why Columbia Pictures didn't release the movie to be in theaters for a holiday is odd to me, but time can be funny that way. In any event, it's another opportunity to loop back around to "Groundhog Day." 

Almost everybody already knows the story of "Groundhog Day" so well that it's become its own mini-genre ("Happy Death Day," "Palm Springs"). Still, in case this is your first day here, it goes like this: Murray plays Phil Connors, a prickly, sarcastic television weatherman assigned to a location shoot in Punxsutawney, Pa., site of the annual holiday festival. Phil is utterly miserable during the trip, annoying his production team (Andie MacDowell and Chris Elliott) as he continually insults the residents of this charming, quaint town. A snowstorm traps the production team in the town, forcing Phil to spend another night in Punxsutawney.

When he wakes up, Phil recognizes that not only is he stuck in Punxsutawney, but he's beginning the same day – Feb. 2 – all over again. Phil is stunned to relive the same day's events, where the only thing different is him. Hoping the situation is just an elaborate nightmare, Phil goes to sleep and wakes up again on Feb. 2. Again and again.

Once he realizes he's trapped in an endless loop, Phil recognizes the situation affords him life with no permanent consequences and uses it to his advantage. He strikes up conversations with attractive women one day, and then the next use their answers to establish intimate connections. Phil eats, drinks, and generally does whatever he wants. Once he becomes bored with that, he tries to sleep with his producer Rita (MacDowell) by becoming the most charming man on the planet, at least in her eyes. Phil finds out what she likes and then pretends to have those qualities on the next loop. If the conversation goes south, Phil simply replays the same routine with Rita the following day until he finds success. Rita is simply a maze to conquer, but Phil remains unable to find the center.

Eventually, even that gets boring. Phil moves onto other activities to occupy his time – learning to play the piano, robbing the bank, suicide – but he struggles to find meaning in any of it. 

"What would you do if you were stuck in one place, and every day was exactly the same, and nothing you could say, and nothing you could do, mattered," Phil asks one of the locals.

"That about sums it up for me," is the reply.

The original script for "Groundhog Day" was developed by Danny Rubin, who was inspired to consider what somebody would do with immortality after reading vampire novels by Anne Rice. The screenplay found its way to Harold Ramis, a comedy writer behind hit movies like "Animal House" and "Stripes." He also co-starred alongside his longtime friend and collaborator Murray in the first two Ghostbusters films.

"You hear a lot of high concept ideas for movies," Ramis said during a 1993 interview on NPR's Fresh Air. "This was posed to me as a guy reliving the same day over and over again. I said that's interesting. That will probably work for about 20 minutes. When I read the script, I found that it went into all these unexpected areas, and it really was about one person's enlightenment. He finally learns to step off the wheel of karma."

But while Murray and Ramis had fruitful collaborations in the past, the two had a falling out during the making of "Groundhog Day." They bickered over the tone of the movie, and it got to the point where Murray wouldn't talk to Ramis as the director. Ramis hinted at the behind-the-scenes tension during his Fresh Air interview when he mentions the groundhog onset only bit Murrary twice.

"It showed remarkable restraint on the part of the groundhog."

Whatever behind-the-scenes tensions there were, the finished film worked for audiences. "Groundhog Day" opened in early February 1993 at number one and became a word-of-mouth hit, enjoying a long box office run that lasted into the summer. The movie grossed a total of $70 million during its original theatrical presentation.

Not everybody immediately grasped the potential for "Groundhog Day" to be a perennial favorite of film fans. Owen Gleiberman of Entertainment Weekly praised parts of the movie but ultimately called it "lightweight."

"What the movie lacks is the ingenious, lapidary comic structure that could have made these moments fuse into something tricky and wild (which is what happened in say, "Back to the Future)," he wrote in his 1993 review. "'Groundhog Day' has a clever premise, yet it's surprisingly flat. As directed by Harold Ramis, the routines don't stagger and build - they're more like a series of isolated, catch-as-catch-can sketches."

And yet, the movie endured. "Groundhog Day" benefited with its release in the 90s, a decade where films enjoyed second lives (and third, fourth, etc.) through video rentals and cable reruns. People were given many opportunities to watch "Groundhog Day" repeatedly, and they fell in love with this funny movie that displayed an underlying sweetness and philosophy about life.

Once video rentals faded into history and viewers began shifting their viewing habits from cable to streaming, "Groundhog Day" remained in our cultural memories. It obviously helps that Groundhog Day, the holiday, is celebrated once a year, giving all of the movie's fans an excuse to rewatch it. Besides, Murray has achieved almost legendary status as a generational comedy icon in the modern era. For nearly 50 years, Murray has made several successful and acclaimed films that will likely stand the test of time, but I'd argue no other movie captures his appeal and talent quite like "Groundhog Day." Its blend of sarcasm, sentimentality, and melancholy has engaged fans on a deeper level than few expected. 

"It gives people the idea that you can learn lessons and get better," MacDowell told The New York Times in an oral history of the movie. "All of us would like to live days over. It's on the level of 'It's a Wonderful Life.'"

Next Week: "Office Space"