Then put your little hand in mine....
there ain't no hill or mountain we can't climb....
Groundhog Day.
On the surface, I think this is a "good" movie because it has good writing, a great comic actor, Bill Murray, some good supporting roles, and a unique premise.
I'm a big fan of movies and books that portray a "normal" world where everything is consistent with the reality in which we all dwell, except for a little twist.
I dig this concept pretty much however it's conceived, whether the twist comes from: a technological advance, like in Jurassic Park; a discovery, like in Congo or Sphere (mmkay, so I like Michael Crichton, and I mean the BOOKS, because apparently someone always decides to put a few spoonfuls of crap into the mix when they turn his sci-fi books into movies) or the introduction of some element of fantasy or science fiction, as in the Anne Rice Vampire Chronicles (Interview with the Vampire, et al.) or Piers Anthony's Incarnations of Immortality.
Aside: That last one is actually a pretty decent series. Not the toughest reads in the world in terms of sophistication of prose, but then again, neither are J.K. Rowlings' books and well, I think it's the understatement of the decade to say that those books have a "solid following." Anyways, the first one is On a Pale Horse, and introduces the premise that there are individuals who are the incarnations of, and therefore have the responsibility of governing, such far-reaching parts of life as Nature, War, Fate, Time, Good, Evil, and, as the title of the first book in the series hints, Death. Some of the books are hit or miss, but the ones on Death and Evil are both very enjoyable; as a very human face is put on some of the elements of life that are most feared and hated.
Aside-to-the-Aside: (Yes, I can do that, it's my blog damnit!) Or maybe I just liked those books best because I first read them in my angsty teenage years when me and some of my friends wore trenchcoats to high school. Yeah, we beat those Columbine punks to the "Trenchcoat Mafia" idea by a long shot, and they had to go give angsty kids who play Dungeons & Dragons and video games a bad name!
I tell you what, and this comes from a hardcore Star Wars geek, Anthony does a hell of a better job of illustrating a "fall from grace" than Lucas's effort at portraying Anakin's transformation into Darth Vader. I'm putting another post on the back burner that's all about my love for the "sympathetic" villian; it's hard to do right, but man, when it's good, it's REALLY good. While I thought Episode III was the best of the (bad) prequels, you can imagine my disappointment with Lucas when it's like, "Alright Hayden, now, in this scene, right after you just attacked Mace Windu, you're going to uh.. just start being REALLY bad. You were conflicted before, but now, what the hell, you're just an evil sonuvabitch." Sigh.
Anyways, prior to that tangent extraordinaire, I think I was talking about Groundhog Day, and that on the surface, I love it for: a) being funny (Harold Ramis is a comedic badass), and for, b) being a normal world with a little twist.
Under the surface, however, I love it for a different reason; and this is the real reason why it makes my list of movies that I'm compelled to watch when I see it's on.
I love this movie because part of me wants to be able to bowl over a woman with such powerful perfection. But, as it's portrayed in the movie, perfection isn't always what it seems to be. The days that Phil spends lavishing attention on Rita, where he has everything she loves laid out for her; the typical definition of showing a woman "the perfect night," those are the days he only gets so far before he creeps her out and gets smacked in the face. Phil finally succeeds when he completes his change into being a genuinely great person to everyone, and, it's when Rita sees that, she ultimately falls for him.
Even though he learns EVERYTHING about her, it's not the fact that he knows she loves Rocky Road and French poetry; it isn't that knowledge that empowers him. He learns that he loves her because she's an amazing person and is so kind to others; (he tells her this when she's half-asleep after the card-tossing-into-the-hat scene. And yes, I just saw it, so I'm not a total freak and have the movie memorized) and it's his own transformation into a person that cares for other people that seals the deal.
So, if you're ridiculously overanalyzing the movie like I am right now, you draw the conclusion that you don't need the eternity that Phil had to show someone that you're what they're looking for; or, if you do, you don't need to spend it on her, you need to spend it on you.
Groundhog Day.
On the surface, I think this is a "good" movie because it has good writing, a great comic actor, Bill Murray, some good supporting roles, and a unique premise.
I'm a big fan of movies and books that portray a "normal" world where everything is consistent with the reality in which we all dwell, except for a little twist.
I dig this concept pretty much however it's conceived, whether the twist comes from: a technological advance, like in Jurassic Park; a discovery, like in Congo or Sphere (mmkay, so I like Michael Crichton, and I mean the BOOKS, because apparently someone always decides to put a few spoonfuls of crap into the mix when they turn his sci-fi books into movies) or the introduction of some element of fantasy or science fiction, as in the Anne Rice Vampire Chronicles (Interview with the Vampire, et al.) or Piers Anthony's Incarnations of Immortality.
Aside: That last one is actually a pretty decent series. Not the toughest reads in the world in terms of sophistication of prose, but then again, neither are J.K. Rowlings' books and well, I think it's the understatement of the decade to say that those books have a "solid following." Anyways, the first one is On a Pale Horse, and introduces the premise that there are individuals who are the incarnations of, and therefore have the responsibility of governing, such far-reaching parts of life as Nature, War, Fate, Time, Good, Evil, and, as the title of the first book in the series hints, Death. Some of the books are hit or miss, but the ones on Death and Evil are both very enjoyable; as a very human face is put on some of the elements of life that are most feared and hated.
I tell you what, and this comes from a hardcore Star Wars geek, Anthony does a hell of a better job of illustrating a "fall from grace" than Lucas's effort at portraying Anakin's transformation into Darth Vader. I'm putting another post on the back burner that's all about my love for the "sympathetic" villian; it's hard to do right, but man, when it's good, it's REALLY good. While I thought Episode III was the best of the (bad) prequels, you can imagine my disappointment with Lucas when it's like, "Alright Hayden, now, in this scene, right after you just attacked Mace Windu, you're going to uh.. just start being REALLY bad. You were conflicted before, but now, what the hell, you're just an evil sonuvabitch." Sigh.
Anyways, prior to that tangent extraordinaire, I think I was talking about Groundhog Day, and that on the surface, I love it for: a) being funny (Harold Ramis is a comedic badass), and for, b) being a normal world with a little twist.
Under the surface, however, I love it for a different reason; and this is the real reason why it makes my list of movies that I'm compelled to watch when I see it's on.
I love this movie because part of me wants to be able to bowl over a woman with such powerful perfection. But, as it's portrayed in the movie, perfection isn't always what it seems to be. The days that Phil spends lavishing attention on Rita, where he has everything she loves laid out for her; the typical definition of showing a woman "the perfect night," those are the days he only gets so far before he creeps her out and gets smacked in the face. Phil finally succeeds when he completes his change into being a genuinely great person to everyone, and, it's when Rita sees that, she ultimately falls for him.
Even though he learns EVERYTHING about her, it's not the fact that he knows she loves Rocky Road and French poetry; it isn't that knowledge that empowers him. He learns that he loves her because she's an amazing person and is so kind to others; (he tells her this when she's half-asleep after the card-tossing-into-the-hat scene. And yes, I just saw it, so I'm not a total freak and have the movie memorized) and it's his own transformation into a person that cares for other people that seals the deal.
So, if you're ridiculously overanalyzing the movie like I am right now, you draw the conclusion that you don't need the eternity that Phil had to show someone that you're what they're looking for; or, if you do, you don't need to spend it on her, you need to spend it on you.
posted by Frange at 2:48 AM
1 Comments:
I love Groundhog Day. I even saw it in the theater.
If you already know everything about a person, the mystery and sense of discovery are already gone. It's enough to put forth true effort and show that you care, not just for her, but for others as well.
Plus yeah, it's creepy in a stalker kind of way to know so much about a person. "Getting to know you" should involve both parties.
Oh, and I've heard good things about Piers Anthony. So many books, so little time.
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