Topic > Living an Authentic Life in the Movie “Groundhog Day”

Analysis of the Movie Groundhog DayWhat would you do if you had the chance to relive the same day over and over again? In the movie Groundhog Day, a man named Phil Connors relives the same day every time he wakes up. Phil, who is a meteorologist for a Pittsburgh news station, goes to Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania to cover Groundhog Day. He is accompanied by his producer Rita and cameraman Larry, both of whom think Phil is an uptight, arrogant and rude man. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay From the moment we meet Phil Connors, it's clear that he's an idiot who believes his job is a waste of talent and time. In the morning, Phil wakes up to his alarm with radio broadcasters announcing that it is Groundhog Day. After breakfast, you then head to the Groundhog Day celebrations. Phil then makes a heartless false report, and immediately insists on returning to Pittsburgh, even though Rita wanted to continue filming and enjoying the atmosphere. On the way back to Pittsburgh, snow falls heavily and the streets are covered in snow. a thick white sheet. Due to the blizzard, the roads are closed and Phil is stranded in Punxsutawney. To his surprise, he wakes up the next day to the same radio broadcast and the same song. Then he discovers that he is reliving the same day. Thinking that he is going crazy at first, Phil panics and searches for a way out of the time loop. However, once Phil discovers that he is trapped and no one notices, he starts doing whatever he wants because there are no consequences for his actions. This film can be closely related to the themes of existentialism. Existentialism was a term coined by Gabriel Marcel and applied to Jean Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir. It is the philosophical idea that reality is characterized by change. Existentialists believe that reality is change, and as a human being, you are in a constant process of becoming who you are. Our intentions and life plans are essential to this theory. Although your daily life shapes who you are, we are subject to fundamental illusions. We tend to live our lives incorrectly, and because of this, we live inauthentically. To be inauthentic is to be alienated from ourselves and others. But one of the main themes of existentialism is that we are radically free. Jean Sartre underlines this idea by saying: “there is nothing incorporated, over time we build our essence. The choices we make shape us, we create ourselves." Our individual choices affect everyone around us, and we feel anxiety about recognizing our freedom. That said, the theme that we are radically free is portrayed many times in the film Groundhog Day. This can be shown through the main character Phil. Once Phil discovers that he has the ability to do whatever he wants, he is radically free, as he has no consequences. For example, during the car scene, Phil enters a mailbox and steps onto the railroad tracks while being chased by police cars. He has complete freedom and no hesitation for his actions because even if he gets in trouble with the law, the next day it is all forgotten. Despite this, Phil wants to break the curse of reliving Groundhog Day. He begins to realize that life has meaning and purpose, but he must be the one to give it that purpose and value. As he progresses through the days, you can see his attitude becoming more positive and living a moral life. He tries to do the right thing by treating people with respect and falls in love.