Groundhog Day is widely considered one of the best comedy films ever made, and there are many reasons for that. There's the comfortable small-town setting. There's the brilliant performances, especially that of Bill Murray, who made Phil Connors both likable and detestable. And, of course, there's the stellar writing and unique premise.
Groundhog Day may be one of the best-written comedies ever made. Not only is the premise unique, but the integration of the time loop concept is wickedly intelligent and relatively plot hole-free. But, above all else, it's simply very, very funny. Phil makes for a great lead character, and he did some truly hilarious things over the course of the movie.
"Too Early For Flapjacks?"
One of the first things Phil does in the movie is get drunk at a bowling alley and go for a late-night spin in someone else's car. This is Phil at his most reckless, and it ends with him crashing into another car at a car lot.
When the police approach the window, Phil simply looks at the officer and makes a sarcastic fast-food order. When the other drunk man makes a genuine request for food (flapjacks!), Phil turns once again to the officer and asks, "Too early for flapjacks?" Not surprisingly, he is immediately thrown in jail.
His First (Sarcastic) Telecast
Nothing sums up Phil's character better than his very first telecast: "This is one time where television really fails to capture the true excitement of a large squirrel predicting the weather. I, for one, am very grateful to have been here. From Punxsutawney, this is Phil Connors. So long."
The telecast is just dripping with contempt and sarcasm, a fact that Rita immediately picks up, asking Phil, "Want to try it again without the sarcasm?" Phil can be a major jerk, but at least he's a funny jerk.
Destroying The Alarm Clock
It's amazing how Bill Murray can make the simple act of destroying an alarm clock so funny and cathartic. Day after day after day, Phil wakes up at 6 AM to the sounds of Sonny & Cher's "I Got You, Babe".
After a certain amount of time, Phil grows so dejected with the time loop and the music that he simply rolls over in bed and smashes the alarm clock to pieces. Not only is it funny, but it also serves as a wonderful bit of character development. Phil is getting fed up, and it culminates with...
His Deadpan Suicide Attempt
Phil eventually grows so dejected with the time loop that he attempts suicide on multiple occasions. Some of these attempts are played straight, others for laughs. Perhaps the "funniest" attempt is when Phil throws a toaster in the bath.
He simply wanders downstairs, ignores the bed and breakfast proprietor as she tries to make chit chat, unplugs the toaster from the wall, and wanders back upstairs, leaving the poor woman both confused and slightly worried—and then the lights flicker. It's a fantastic piece of dark comedy.
Filling In Conversation Himself
The poor bed and breakfast proprietor often gets the brunt of Phil's frustration and general misanthropy. He can't even bear to make small talk with the poor woman, giving her a full and detailed brief on the day's weather rather than just making simple chit chat.
Things get even worse once Phil runs through the day a couple of times. At one point, he begins answering her questions before she's even asked them, completing the entire conversation without the proprietor even opening her mouth.
Memorizing The Day's Events (To Rob A Truck)
No one can say that Phil isn't dedicated. Early on in his time loop, Phil memorizes every little detail about the day's events. He knows when the wind will blow, when a dog will bark in the distance, and when a car will speed by. Audiences watch in joy as Phil accurately predicts each event, but things get even funnier when the movie reveals the armored truck.
Phil has memorized everything simply so he can rob the truck at the precise moment, allowing him to simply walk up to the truck and snag a bag of money while the elderly guards are distracted.
Copying Ned
Ned Ryerson is one of the movie's most beloved ing characters, which is in large part thanks to Stephen Tobolowsky's lovably annoying performance.
At one point, Phil utilizes the time loop and pretends to be an old classmate of Nancy Taylor, having learned many things about her from the previous day. When he approaches Nancy at the Groundhog festival, he takes a page out of Ned's book and ecstatically yells, "Nancy!? Nancy Taylor!?"
Punching Ned
At one point, Phil grows so irritated with Ned's constant and irritating presence that he straight up punches him in the face. The act of violence itself is not that funny, and it makes Phil come across as quite the jerk.
However annoying Ned may be, he generally means well and certainly didn't deserve a punch in the face, but it's the way Phil punches him that makes the scene so hilarious. He stops in his tracks, squares up to Ned, sarcastically yells "Ned!?", and then lets him have it before simply carrying on with the rest of his day.
Trolling Ned
As funny as the punch is, Phil's best moment comes when he decides to troll Ned and scares him away with his overt friendliness. He ends up embracing Ned on the street, tells him that he misses him dearly, and asks Ned to call in sick so they can spend the day together. Ned is rightfully creeped out and runs away in fear, completely regretting having approached his old school buddy.
Memorizing Jeopardy! To Troll Old People
In one of the movie's funniest sequences, Phil is shown having completely memorized an episode of Jeopardy!. He watches with the bed and breakfast proprietors and correctly answers all the questions, impressing everyone in attendance.
While Phil didn't memorize Jeopardy! to troll the old people, he still finds time to mess with the head of the poor proprietor. He turns his head to her, looks her square in the eyes, and answers a question before it has even been asked, resulting in the proprietor getting suitably creeped out.
