"Groundhog Day" is a very entertaining and
unusual movie, starring Bill Murray and Andie McDowell. The story,
which involves experiencing the same day repeatedly, is quite
intriguing and the acting is very good, especially that of Bill
Murray.Phil Connors (Murray) is a
rather bitter news reporter who's assigned to report on whether or
not the groundhog in Punxtawney, Pennsylvania sees his shadow,
indicating whether or not there will be six more weeks of winter. He
wakes up in his hotel room at 6AM to the tune of Sonny and Cher's "I
Got You Babe" on his alarm clock radio. He has a rather unpleasant
day, encountering a pushy insurance salesman on the street and
accidentally stepping into a puddle. A blizzard hits the town,
whence he and the crew are forced to stay another night.
The next morning, Phil is quite surprised to
learn that it's groundhog day again! He repeats the same day with
all the same experiences. This occurs again day after day.
Eventually Phil learns that he can do whatever
he wants because his actions have no longterm consequences. Thus he
starts acting recklessly, pigging out on food, robbing banks, and
seducing women. He finds he is unable to seduce his co-worker Rita
(McDowell) however.
Phil starts to get disillusioned and tries
killing himself repeatedly, but each time he does, he still wakes up
the following morning at 6AM. He even kills the groundhog along with
himself one day, to no effect.
Phil confesses his predicament to Andie, who
suggests to him to make the most of his condition by helping others
as much as possible. Thus, he learns to play the piano and make ice
sculptures, learns about insurance from the annoying man on the
street and gets to know him, and fixes an old woman's flat tire. He
also tries to save the life of an old man who dies, but find he is
unable to do so.
Eventually, Phil hosts a huge celebration in
which he sings and plays the piano to a large audience, to
everyone's delight. He also finally wins the love of Andie. The next
morning he finally wakes up to a new day, but he decides to settle
down in Punxtawney.
"What About Bob?" is a very funny film starring
Bill Murray as Bob Wiley, a highly neurotic psyciatric patient and
Richard Dreyfuss as Dr. Leo Marvin, his stuffy psychiatrist. Both do
a great job in this picture, especially Murray, who I believe he
plays his best comedic role in this film.
Dr. Leo Marvin is a successful New York
psychiatrist who's about to appear on "Good Morning America" to
promote his new book "Baby Steps". Bob Wiley is neurotic who seems
to be afraid of everything. Bob is referred to Dr. Marvin by a
colleague, who is incredibly relieved to have him off his back. Dr.
Marvin is about to go on vacation so he can't really be bothered
with Bob's problems for the time being and brushes him off. He gives
Bob a copy of "Baby Steps" and tells him to read it and follow his
advice until he returns from vacation.
Bob is badly in need of help, so he tracks Leo
down to his vacation home and takes a bus there along with his
beloved pet goldfish Gill, which he keeps in a small bowl and takes
with him. Leo's neighbors, who are furious with him for buying their
dream vacation home, tell Bob where he lives in order to annoy him.
When Bob arrives, Leo is furious, but Bob befriends Leo's family,
who are all very friendly to him.
Bob ends up spending the next few days with
Leo's family, much to Leo's disappointment. He helps Leo's son Siggy
overcome his fear of diving and goes out sailing with his daughter
Anna and her friends. After Leo pushes Bob into the water, his
family insists that he apologize to Bob and invite him over for
dinner, which he does. Then a huge rainstorm begins, so Leo is
forced to let Bob spend the night at his house, this being the night
before his "Good Morning America" presentation.
The next morning, Leo tries to rush Bob out of
the house before the TV crew arrives, but they arrive before he
leaves. They want Bob to appear on the show, so Leo is coerced into
letting him on the show, much against his wishes. Leo botches the
show very badly, but Bob captivates the audience. After the show,
Leo loses his temper and kicks Bob out of the house.
Leo figures the best way to get rid of Bob is
to check him in to a mental health clinic, where he believes his
associates will commit him. Instead, Bob ends up entertaining them
with his humor, whence they release him. Furiously, Leo picks him up
and strands him on the road. But then Leo gets pulled over for
speeding and he gets mud all over his suit. To make matters worse,
it turns out that it's Leo's birthday and his family have prepared a
surprise party for him.
When Leo returns home, his family and friends
all come out to surprise him, including his beloved sister Lily from
Chicago. But when Bob shows up and puts his arm around Lily, Leo
loses it and tackles Bob.
Leo is now on the verge of collapse. A doctor
comes over to treat him. The family decides it's better if Bob
leaves before Leo recovers, so reluctantly Bob leaves. But Leo has
been secretly planning to get rid of Bob once and for all. Leo
sneaks out of the house, goes to the local store and buys some
explosives. He then finds Bob, ties him down, places the explosives
on him, and sets off a timer, calling all this "death therapy". Bob
doesn't realize that Leo is really trying to kill him, thinking this
is just a form of play therapy. But he manages to untie himself.
Then he goes back into Leo's house, where he puts the explosives,
and comes out to congratualte Leo on his death therapy. Shortly
thereafter, the explosives go off, burning down the house. Leo's
neighbors are outside fishing and excitedly chant, "Burn! Burn!"
Now Leo has a real breakdown. The movie ends
with Bob marrying Lily. Leo finally recovers once the marriage vows
are completed. Bob goes on to write a book called "Death Therapy"
and Leo tries to sue him for the rights.
