Groundhog Day

1. Groundhog Day Group 1: Pooja Shah James Zhang Jasmine Bun Wesley Chen Andy Le

2. Title/Opening Credits Opening Credit: happy music, may be played again later on in the movie A Harold Ramis Film Billy Murray Andie MacDowell -clouds in the background (represent the repetition of the day over and over again) “Someone asked me today, Phil, if you could be anywhere in the world today, where would you like to be? And I said probably right here. Falco, Nevada. -while Phil is telling the weather, there are more names that appear on the bottom. -starts again at 3:28 credits- at producer

3. Story/Plot/Narrative • Intro begins with a sky shot introducing characters names • Main character is a weatherman who is very entertaining and is a famous anchorman apparently an editing scene showing a TV intro, then intro to the city. • -The News Crew goes to a Groundhog Day Festival but Phil is pessimistic about the idea. • -Phil is a narcist and thinks he is the best

4. -Phil wakes up to music and washes his face while the radio talks about the blizzard, Radio talks about Phil • - Phil takes his sarcasm to the other level • - He passes a homeless man and meets Ned. • -Ned is very talkative and annoying • -Phil steps into a pool of ice water while getting away from Ned • -Phil goes to the festival and it has tons of people in it, waiting for what the groundhog, Phil says. • - Phil’s producer is very outgoing and loving-Rita

5. -Phil is a groundhog who the town talks to for weather and that day he ends up seeing his shadow, which meant 6 more weeks of winter • - There is going to be a blizzard and gets very frustrated. • -When he wakes up the next morning the exact same dialogue and song plats, and it says its February 2nd again. Phil asks the business man what day it is, and he says its Groundhog Day, and we see that he is mean by the way he reacts. • - Phil asks someone where everyone is going, and realizes that it is the festival. • -Phil makes his way through the city and passes the homeless man again, and meets Ned for another time; he once again steps in the water.

6. -Third day: he ignores everyone except Rita, who he explains that he is going through Déjà vu. • -Phil goes to see a doctor and psychologist. • -He goes to a bar and meets new friends who drive a car and realizes that nothing he does will matter the next day. - He goes to jail and wakes up the next morning in his bed. • -Phil knows everything about the woman, and tries to avoid the questions that she was going to ask. • - He hits Ned and doesn’t want to talk to him, and he has a new interest that day: Nancy Taylor, so he spends 2 days getting to know her to be able to sleep with her but says Rita’s name instead of her’s during it.

7. -Next day: Phil steals money from the truck and then thinks that he would like to get to know Rita and ask her out on a date. Phil takes out a part of the news van just to stay with Rita (Phil keeps repeating to make the perfect dates) he does many things to impress her such as speaking French. • -They both go dancing by themselves, and Phil kisses Rita in his new house and they fight as soon as she realizes that Phil only wants her for his personal reasons. • - Phil gets tired of this, and there are many shots of the alarm and Phil’s frustration builds up. • -Phil attempts suicide in multiple ways (driving off a hill, putting a toaster in the path tub, jumping off a building

8. -Phil ends up talking to Rita and she says everything she liked, and he tells her how he felt about Rita in the beginning. • -Phil starts to change: he helps the homeless guy, gets to know Larry, gets piano lessons, and makes ice sculptures. • - He acts as if he is interested in Ned to try to get rid of him, and Phil tries to make the homeless man survive. • - Phil’s last Groundhog Day: he starts to become hero-like and saves a young child, fixes broken tires, and saves a man from choking.

9. -Phil masters the piano for a party and Rita buys Phil for the day from an auction. • -Phil wakes up at 6 and Rita is still with him in bed • -“Today is tomorrow” is what Phil says • -The day continues and Phil and Rita are in love. • -Music is very happy just like the one in the beginning.

10. Subplot In the end, when he kissed Rita, you could hear magical sound in the background, like a fairytale, implying that the spell is broken. Rita: His love story with Rita Ned: Wanted him to buy life insurance, and at first, he was normal and didn’t Nancy: The girl who he seduced, and found out information about her to his advantage. Who he saved: the little boy on the tree, the man who was choking, the two old ladies in the car who got a flat tire, He learns piano and ice sculpting His weatherman career His and Larry’s friendship

11. Subtext He didn’t want to go to Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania Irony: Phil’s name means “lover”, but in the beginning through the mid-plot, we were able to see that he was clearly not a lover, rather a man without feelings for others. His name also has other ironical connections such as him having the same name as the groundhog. Of all the ideas packed into this odd little movie, the heart is probably in Phil and Ralph's dialogue: On some level - we're all 1) "stuck" in one place, 2) each day is very much the same, and 3) nothing that we do matters. Phil's experience is not unique; we're all in Groundhog Day.

12. Characterization Phil- Phil is a very pessimistic man who only cares about himself. He is very narcissitic and only sticks to his beliefs. However, later in the story, he becomes more aware of his attitude and he alters it to become a better person since he is stuck in the same day every single day. He soon becomes more optimistic and finds happiness in his life. Rita- Rita is a very outgoing and genuine person where Phil loves Rita deeply. Rita is a stepping stone in the movie because she is the only reason Phil is becoming a better person. Rita is a very crucial character in this movie because the whole movie revolves around her especially Phil. She is a very down-to-earth person, very loving and affectionate, cares about everyone, and she even cares about Phil even with his pessimistic attitude.

13. Characterization cont). Larry- Larry is a kind cameraman who is actually pretty kind and nice. But because Phil is such a jerk towards him, he resents Phil. However, he begins to have different thoughts about Phil because Phil becomes a more affectionate person and he treats Larry nice. Ned- Ned is a life insurance employee that always bugs Phil nonstop until Phil finally purchases life insurance for all cases. Nancy- Nancy is a very outgoing type of gal and she is very naïve because Phil lies to her just to sleep with her. Phil takes advantage of his repetition of days so he can get laid.

14. Characterization cont). Homeless Man- The homeless man is a very significant character in the movie because Phil tries to save this man in every single occasion. Phil fed him, took him to the doctor, gave him a good meal, gave him CPR, and did everything for him, but the man always died on that day. Groundhog- The groundhog is the “weatherman” in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. If this animal sees if it’s sunny outside then it will go back into its burrow and it will predict that there will be six more weeks of winter. This is the stepping stone in Phil’s life because he will accept that winter will never end, and he will begin to love winter.

15. Point of View • The whole movie based on the point of view of Phil. • The film's perspective is primarily visionary and emotional. • This whole movie was based on Subjective narration, where it causes a the audience to see what feel was feeling and the lesson his life was trying to teach.

16. Metaphor & Metonymy/Symbolism • Alarm Clock: tells us that the day is repeating itself again, and we know everything’s going to be the same again, from the dialogue of people to everything that’s going to happen. • When Phil kisses Rita: foretells us that tomorrow isn’t going to be the same anymore, it’s like the key that broke the curse that was placed on Phil to be stuck in a time loop. That’s why the little tingly ‘magic’ sound plays when they kiss.

17. 3 Important Scenes The scene where Phil always tries to save the homeless man in every way possible, but the homeless man ends up dying. (25:38) When Phil kisses Rita near the end of the scene with the magical “ting” sound. (1:36:00) Every morning at 6:00 a.m. the alarm clock turns on with the radio with the song “I Got You Baby.”

19. Setting • The setting is Punxsutawney, a town in Pennsylvania known for its annual ceremony in which a groundhog predicts how much longer winter will last. • Everyday in the movie is the same day, same people, and same clothes. • Each day starts exactly at 6:00 am. • Each day Phil would go out to the Groundhog ceremony, except during the days he would try to cheat around the system and do others things but fail to do so. • The diner is the very important place where Phil would meet up with his film crew and where he would talk to Rita alone everyday.

20. Dialogue/Quotes • “What if there’s no tomorrow? There wasn’t one today.” – Phil • One of his two inebriated companions then points to a beer glass and sums up the way he is responding to his situation: "You know, some guys would look at this glass and they would say, you know, 'that glass is half empty'. Other guys say 'that glass is half full'. I bet you is (or I peg you as) a 'the glass is half empty' kind of guy. Am I right?“ • When Chekhov saw the long winter, he saw a winter bleak and dark and bereft of hope. Yet we know that winter is just another step in the cycle of life. But standing here among the people of Punxsutawney and basking in the of warmth of their hearths and hearts, I couldn't imagine a better fate than a long and lustrous winter.“

21. Parallelism *The alarm clock! -How each time each day begins, this familiar image, what is constantly repeated throughout the movie is the same as in the alarm goes off with the song, the radio hosts talk, and it always is 6:00 AM -It changes though in shifts of angles -At first, the zoom was far away from the clock, inferring the unimportance of it (or so we think) -The zoomed in and close ups of the clock = a tone of "oh this is happening again?!"; how important and dramatic it has become -Even when Phil broke the clock a few times, we can convey his frustrated attitude towards it and his situation

22. Causal, Spatial, & Temporal • Causal • 1). “Adolescence”- went on a rampage and ran from police • 2). “Sympathy”- the old bum • 3). “His love for Rita”- made him a better person in general • Spatial & Temporal • “stuck in the same time”

23. Range & Depth Range- to what extent we know (in the film) -The audience knows mostly as much as Phil gains from each repeating day -Each day, we learn that Phil gains knowledge from his surroundings -Moreover, the structure of the film focuses our (the audience's) attention on what really happens Depth- how much we know about the film -we know more than the characters in the film b/c we know what is going to happen and why just like Phil

24. Motif Alarm clock: shows the alarm clock multiple times, but they are all in different scenes, where you can see different angles of the alarm clocks. In the beginning you cannot really see much of a difference in the times you see it, but around the fifth time Groundhog Day occurs in Phil’s life, he gets frustrated at just looking at the alarm clock, and there are camera angles where it zooms into the alarm clock. This shows his frustration and later, how he was motivated to actually make an attempt and do better this day- better than the one before. Along with it, there was the daily broadcast and music that played every time it started. Although it was the same throughout, the way that he reacted was different, and it caused him to look out the window with disgust. Another repeating motif in groundhog day was the old man. The old man also emphasized the theme of living each day to it’s maximum potential. Since that man died on Groundhog Day, Phil tried everything he could to help him stay alive. There is a quote where the nurse says “Everybody dies some day” and he responds with “Not today”. And he spends multiple days with him, feeding him, helping him, etc. Doing this, also showed Phil changing as a person, because he was actually being nicer to someone rather than his usual “jerk-like” characteristics. His conversations with Rita was also repeated, in each one, he found out more about her, using it to his advantage of making his knowledge expand and then he would want to make her fall more in love with her.

25. Motivation • In the movie, the main character, Phil Connors is trapped in a recurring day, a freezing February day in Punxsutawney. The town never changes; the events and the people never change. Only Phil can change. • It is impossible for Phil to have any control over the external world. Every morning he wakes up and it’s the same day again. He is compelled to find how best to survive and prosper, and decide if this is a curse or maybe a blessing.

26. Motivation • Through the brilliance of this plot we can observe Phil as he deals with his unique predicament. We can see how he struggles to find meaning and purpose in his life. Each day he experiments with new thoughts and behaviors and he learns what works and what does not work. Any change that occurs must be inside of him because only he can change, all the other characters repeat exactly what they did the day before. • This shines an intense light on Phil’s ability to change himself. As he struggles through all his flawed strategies based on selfishness, manipulation and instant gratification we learn how empty they really are. Over countless days he learns that what pleasures he thought would make him happy have failed to, and he has to accept that his old self has completely run out of steam.

27. Motivation • He is forced to place all his attention on changing the way he interprets the world, on his personal reality, as his external reality is fixed. Once he accepts he is truly stuck, possibly forever, he has nowhere else to go and begins to rebuild his personal reality by changing his attitudes, values, thoughts and feelings. He literally recreates himself by focusing all his attention on inner change, on becoming a more mature, loving and giving person.

28. Motivation • He transforms his thoughts and this transforms every part of his life. His journey proves that inner change is the key to our personal growth and happiness. Phil literally transforms the worst day of his life into his best day, and the only thing that changes is his thinking and his actions. • The genius of the time loop means that there are no other variables that could be responsible for the change. The only changes in the town occur because he has changed.

29. Themes/Tropes • Whether you see a glass that is half empty or half full shows if you are optimistic or a pessimistic person. Phil sees the glass as half empty which basically represents his whole life, and he is trapped in Groundhog Day until he totally changes his whole lifestyle into a positive and outgoing person.

30. Themes/Tropes • If you never change your negative attitudes, then you will never be successful in life and everyone will hate you. Phil was isolated throughout his life and he always wanted to be alone because he hated people. When you are in deep denial or depression, there will be a time to accept that fact and to become a more compassionate/loving person.

31. Is it a good story? • YES! • Why? • It’s truthful (has verisimilitude) • If we were able to be “stuck in time”, anyone would most likely take advantage of the situation just like Phil • Also, anyone would eventually want to get out of the time loop

32. Meaning 1. Emotional -It is visceral, for we anticipate suspense of what Phil will do next, for he is an unpredicatble, round character -In ways, the film is vicarious, for we feel for Phil at time -We get annoyed (like Phil) how the days never continue or change; we feel his pity everytime he gets slapped by Rita, etc. -The film has some verisimilitude, for that Phil's situation can happen to anyone ex. lovestruck, a scrooge, generous, suicidal -Yet, the days never supernaturally stay on the same date 2. Referential -Scrooge from A Christmas Carol -Buddha -Jesus 3. Explicit -How a jerk turned kind-hearted -How nothing will change, unless/until you change first 4. Implicit -live life with a handful of other alternatives --> you never know what will happen next 5. Symptomatic (ideology) -Traditional: A small town doesn't mean you can live a big life

33. Intent/Message • The message in this movie is to tell that some people may think that in life, not knowing what’s going to happen next is somewhat scary and bad. However, knowing exactly what’s going to happen is worst. • Another message this movies gives us is somewhat like the golden rule- You should treat others the same way you want them to treat you. • The human nature of Phil Connors changes as each day progresses. His human nature changes throughout the movie. Phil also had a hard time developing good reationships with other people. That’s when he becomes aware of the situation he’s in.

34. Other comments/thoughts • 42 days in the movie • Director’s cut says actually 30-40 years • The movie was actually filmed in Woodstock, Illinois. • This movie is somewhat based on Buddhist ideals. • In Greek, “Phil” means love, which makes the movie ironic • “Glass is half empty or half full?”