By Scott T. Allison and George R. Goethals
One of the most compelling actions that a hero can perform is an act of redemption. A redeeming act is any behavior that corrects a previous misstep or wrongdoing. Redemptive acts are common occurrences in athletic competitions, as when a football placekicker boots the winning field goal after botching a kick the previous week. Especially powerful instances of redemption are great acts of morality that follow prior moral transgressions. This type of moral redemption is portrayed in a most poignant way in Groundhog Day, a movie released in 1993 starring Bill Murray and produced by Harold Ramis.
In Groundhog Day, the lead character Phil Connors is a television weatherman who is arrogant, nasty, and utterly self-absorbed. Connors spends February 2nd covering the Groundhog Day festivities in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, a place he despises. But when he wakes up the following morning, he discovers that it is February 2nd in Punxsutawney all over again. To his horror, this day continues to repeat itself, and Connors is trapped in Punxsutawney in a seemingly endless time loop.
At first, Connors uses the repetition of the day to steal money and to manipulate women to sleep with him. 
Yet the one woman he grows to love, his producer Rita, won’t succumb to his advances. Connors grows depressed when he realizes that his methods will never allow him to achieve real intimacy with Rita. He becomes suicidal, believing he is stuck, alone forever, in a dull town on an endlessly cold winter day.
Connors’ road to redemption begins when he honestly confides to Rita what is happening to him. She shows him great empathy, suggests that his plight may actually be a gift, and for the first time spends the entire day with him. When Connors awakes to repeat yet another February 2nd, he is a new man. He takes piano and ice-sculpting lessons. He helps a poor homeless man. He saves a boy from a bad fall, performs the Heimlich maneuver on a choking victim, and fixes an old woman’s flat tire.
Rita witnesses the change in Connors and falls in love with him. The arrogance and selfishness that once characterized him have been replaced by kindness, enlightenment, and a drive to make the best out of one’s circumstances. At the end of the day, they fall asleep, in love and in his bed. And when Connors awakes, she is still there, it is finally February 3rd, and the cycle has been broken. Connors’ long redemptive journey has been completed.
Over the years, Groundhog Day has received high acclaim from both critics and audiences. The movie has found its way onto Roger Ebert’s “Great Movies” series. In 2009, the American literary theorist and legal scholar Stanley Fish named the film one of America’s all-time greatest movies. In 2006, the film was added to the United States National Film Registry for being “culturally, historically, and aesthetically significant.”
Groundhog Day‘s story of redemption moves many people deeply, a reaction that caught director and producer Harold Ramis by surprise. 
“This movie spoke to people on a lot of levels,” said Ramis. “The spiritual community responded to this film in an unprecedented way. Hasidic Jews held up signs outside of theaters asking, ‘Are you living the same day over and over again?’ Then I started getting letters from the Zen Buddhist community, the Yoga community, the Christian fundamentalist community, the psychoanalytic community, and everyone claiming that this was their philosophy and that I must be one of them for having made this movie.”
The story of a hero’s redemptive journey has universal appeal and touches something powerful inside the human psyche. To legions of people, there is great spiritual significance in Bill Murray’s unforgettable portrayal of the hero Phil Connors. Groundhog Day suggests that all of us, whatever our flaws or circumstances, can redeem ourselves.
Below is a clip from the movie, showing Phil Connors’ inept attempt to woo Rita before embarking on his journey of redemption.
Well, that’s interesting. I didn’t really know much about Groundhog Day and never much thought about it– I’m not a big Bill Murray fan. But I might have to track it down after reading that.
I’m a big believer in redemption. Just because somebody gets off to a bad start doesn’t mean they can’t change their ways. In fiction, a lot of interesting characters have been built on the concept of redemption, from Spider-Man to Londo on Babylon 5.
Although I’ve never seen Groundhog Day, I think that Phil Conners shows that heroes aren’t always born heroic. They are made that way by chance and choice, which is one reason why redemptive heroes are so inspirational. They show us that it is possible to change into a better person ourselves.
Phil’s experience reminds us that sometimes people just need a push in the right direction to fulfill their full potential.
Groundhog Day is one of my favorite movies of all time so I really enjoyed this post. Phil Connors is definitely a hero in my book, he just needed some time to realize his heroism. After making mistakes that result in the same day over and over, Phil begins to save people and show his heroism. Great movie.
One interesting aspect of this movie in comparison to Campbell’s principles is that Rita is a temptation of the flesh for Phil, but sh also plays an essential role in the redemption. In this case, the temptation of the flesh is acting as the goal itself rather than a distraction from the ultimate goal. The fact that Phil becomes a better man through the process and eventually earns the right to move onto the next day is merely a byproduct of Phil’ s succumbing to the lure of a woman. He spends a good amount of time helping people (old woman’s flat tire, choking mayor, kid falling out of the tree), but he also allocates a good deal of his time to finding ways to woo Rita (piano lessons, ice sculpting, poetry). I think Rita is an interesting character because in being a successful temptation of the flesh, she also helps the man become a hero. According to Campbell, she should be doing the opposite (trying to distract or destroy the hero).
“to world peace”
^Interesting observation, Geoff. In Campbell’s terms, Rita does play a dual role of both temptress and ‘wise old man’. She wouldn’t allow Phil to touch her flesh until he had extricated himself from the belly of the whale and finished traveling the entire road of trials. And she helps him get there by showing by example how a human being should lead his/her life.
I feel that redemptive heroes are one of our favorites because they are relatable. These heroes see the errors in their ways and are able to fix themselves. Many of us who strive to reach some form of heroic status have also erred in our lives. After all, “to err is human” but characters like Phil Connors show us that finding redemption is also just as human as anything else.
I think the character Phil Connors is a prime example of how heroes come from unexpected places. There is no way to create a hero, rather a situation creates a hero. Needless to say, Phil’s situation is not at all realistic – but nonetheless he was able to conquer the situation in order to truly achieve redemption. It takes him awhile to get there – but he was determined once he set his mind on what course to take. Phil is a great example of how redemption comes in many forms, and oftentimes breeds unlikely heroes.
To Scott & George
Thank you for that article. Groundhog Day was, and still is one of my all time favorite movies. I watch it every now and again just to get..recentered and also when I kinda want a good crying session. Just reading this article made me smile. Phil Connors, in my book, qualifies as a very subtle hero!
Hi RJDiogenes,
Just like you, I didn't know much about Groundhog Day but it seems to be a very interesting story. Is there anyone who can help me find a resource for it? I’m getting more intrigued.
Phil Connors story of redemption and transformation is one that should inspire all of us to take a step back and look at the bigger picture in life. The symbolism of him being stuck in the endless loop of the same day until finally changing his own character for the better can be used and applied to help any person in life.
Loved groundhog day, by far Phil Connors best film.
I was watching Groundhog Day tonight after not seeing it years. It’s always been a favorite little gem of mine. I Googled the movie title and “redemption” and it led me to your blog post. So nice to read here what I’d been mulling over – how inspiring this always is to me, and how its story of redemption carries such hope and faith in mankind. I know this post was written a few years ago, but wanted to thank you for it.
Great piece. Groundhog Day has long been my favorite movie. I own a copy and watch it every Feb 2.