Anna Backens - Groundhog Day

When I watched this movie in class, I first of all noticed that Phil was completely self-reliant in his life. He didn't want any handouts from anyone. At his television station, he acted like he was some god-like, all-knowing, person and he expected everyone to wait on him like that. He thought that somehow he was superior to everyone else and lived with a egocentric view of his life. When Bill, Rita, and Larry travel to report on the national holiday, time begins to repeat itself mysteriously and Bill finds himself waking up every morning to the same day and at the same time, six o'clock. Bill's first reaction is interesting, he tries to literally fight time and beat it by thinking that if he can escape the city then he will stop reliving the same day over. Bill's uncertainty leads to anxiety and then to denial. He stops caring about life and on several occasions tries to kill himself. Time, in this case, cannot end its cycle even if death comes so Bill realizes there must be something more in life. He comes to a revelation of his frail humanity and his inner need for community, so he becomes transparent with Rita at a dinner which is the kairos moment for Bill in the movie. He decides to take control of his surroundings, but in a self-less way. He changes to appreciate life more and becomes more interested in others' needs instead of himself. More importantly for Bill, he learns how to love in a deeper way for Rita. His initial interest for her is only physical but when he learns that she won't love him in that way, he works to understand love because he wants it to be a reciprocal process. Eventually it turns into long-standing, unselfish love shortly before the end of the movie. Bill isn't the center of the universe in his mind, Rita and others are, so he feels more liberty when he learns the importance of these lessons. The cyclical aspect of the movie is displayed through imagery as well. There is a scene when Bill clears his window to see outside and makes a circle, and also much snow is in the movie possibly symbolizing cleansing. Bill slowly, day after day of searching for hope was cleansing his life of material wants.