Movie #37 - Groundhog Day

"He's having the worst day of his life... over and over."

Definitely one of the more underrated movies out there... I am glad to see that it finally got recognition recently from the American Film Institutes, breaking one of the Top 10 lists of all time for Top 10 Fantasy films. Somewhat of a stretch considering the movie does not explain any magical or mystical reason why Phil Connors (Bill Murray) is stuck repeating the same day over and over again.

I tend to agree with some of the critics of the AFI list that this movie has the credentials of breaking Top 10 Romantic Comedies, thus not taking a spot away from some other Fantasy films. However, I believe it deserves to be recognize for its creative script and clever casting.

This movie spells comedic classic right from the beginning. Not only is it filmed in Punxsatawney, home of the infamous Puxsatawney Phil, it has a wonderful cast stemming from Andie MacDowell and Bill Murray, to the intricate detail side characters like Stephen Toblowsky (Ned Ryerson), Chris Elliott (Larry), and Brian Doyle-Murray (Buster Green) - who just so happens to be Bill Murray's father.

Directed by Harold Ramis - you have to believe Ramis is finally being recognized as a comedic movie genius with Groundhog Day breaking a list like this. The script is wonderfully written and the dialogue of this movie make it an instant modern-day classic in terms of punch line delivery.

Although I am not a big fan of Bill Murray in all of his variety of roles, I do like the casting of Murray as the lead. He delivers a strong, sarcastic portrayal of Phil Connors, somewhat contrasting the George Bailey type of Its a Wonderful Life and his Frank Cross from Scrooged. His despair in this film is what makes it work so well... if you want a good laugh and enjoy movies from the early 90's, this is definitely one to see.

Movie #27 - Click

"What if you had a universal remote... that controlled your universe?"

A clever concept in this modern day "It's a Wonderful Life" movie. This movie combines the concept of reviewing life's important moments with the comedic twists and turns of an Adam Sandler movie. Surprisingly, the movie works and actually becomes quite tragic and dark by the end of the film.

Sandler's character (Michael Newman) purchases a universal remote from Morty, who is portrayed by the ever popular cult actor, Christopher Walken. Although only a brief side character to the film, the presence of the intense actor helps move this plot forward and keeps the audience entertained.

Throughout the film, there are some funny scenes shot with co-stars David Hasselhoff and Sean Astin and Henry Winkler is cast in yet another Sandler movie - which was somewhat predictable. What I did not enjoy seeing was the make up / bot-ox effects of the younger versions of Winkler and Julie Kavner's characters portraying Sandler's parents. I understand the intent, but whatever happened to just casting younger versions of these people instead of using plastic, horrid looking make-up versions of the real actors. This was also done in X-Men 3 in which Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellan looked quite scary in their rubber faces.

Overall, what makes this movie work in the end was the fact that it tells a compelling story. I never thought I would use the word "compelling" in describing an Adam Sandler movie, but in this case I did. Although the concept has been used in many Hollywood films in the past, this movie seems to get it right without being to silly (as per most Sandler films) or too dramatic - which is also not his strong suit. It just lets you enjoy the trials and tribulations of the life of Michael Newman while allowing the audience to reflect that life is too short just to let it go idly by or speed through it with a "fast forward" button.

The life lessons are there... albeit in a Sandler film. Either way, if you want a movie that you won't sleep through, then I suggest watching Click... at the very least, watch the movie for the upside - Kate Beckinsale for you teenage boys out there or Christopher Walken for the avid movie watchers.

I guarantee you won't use your remote to fast forward through this film.

Reference: I originally published this article on Helium.com.