1. Groundhog Day: Enlightenment of Knowledge, Humanity and Love

2. Topics of Discussion  Why is this movie important (cultural relevance, religious connotations, philosophical ideas)  Why Bill Murray?: The importance of casting and location  Enlightenment through Knowledge, humanity, and Love

3. Groundhog Day (1993)

4. Screenplay by Danny Rubin and Harold Ramis Directed by Harold Ramis Moderate opening, ranked 13 among films released that year Like Ebert said the relevance of this movie was not easily recognized by many at first and probably would have been more critically acclaimed if it had not opened so early in the year and had fallen off the radar of critics at the time of Academy Award Nominations.

5. Awards -1993 British Comedy Award -1994 BAFTA Best Original Screenplay -1994 Saturn Award for Best Actress Andy McDowell Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Film Nominated: Best Actor (Bill Murray), Best Director (Harold Ramis), Best Writing, Fantasy Film -2006 Added to the National Film Registry (Deemed “culturally, historically or aesthetically significant”)

6. Recognitions  # 34 American Film Institute's 100 Funniest Films  #27 101 Greatest Screenplays Ever Written- Writers Guild of America

7. Origin Of Groundhogs Day  German Tradition of Cadlemas was precursor to Groundhog day  Puxitony Phil has seen his shadow 97 times, not 15, 9 undocumented

8. Plot: “He is having the day of his life, over and over again”

9. How long is loop in time?  42 days depicted partially or fully  In an interview Ramis claims 30-40 years

10. Why is this film important  cultural relevance  religious connotations  philosophical ideas

11. Cultural Relevance:  “Groundhog day” entered common use as reference to an “unpleasant situation that continually repeats it self”  Used in 1996 speech by Bill Clinton to describe situation in Bosnia  Noted as American Military slang for any day of tour of duty in Iraq  Astronauts commonly request “I Got You Babe” as alarm music

12. Religious connotations:  Dubbed “most spiritual film of our time”  Buddhism- rebirth as reflection of ones own spiritual messages  Catholism -representation of Purgatory

13. Cast members/ Location  Capraesc small town  Why Bill Murray  Andy McDowell –model, innocence  Extras- more screen time than other movies

15. Why Bill Murray  Understanding the protagonist to understand the development  “just tell me good Phil or bad Phil”

16. Why is the film important  Religious Notions- Buddhism, Catholicism, Reincarnation  Achieving the next level

17. How do we achieve the next level of transcendence  Knowledge  Humanity  Love

18. Knowledge

19. Humanity

20. Love