Long after his career is over Bill Murray will be remembered as one of the most likeable smartasses in Hollywood history. The Chicago native’s legendary career is filled with so many memorable roles and iconic characters that it’s hard to single out one performance as his finest. Murray is amongst the rarest of breeds, a natural comedian known for his virtuosic improvisational skills who can dramatically switch gears at a moment’s notice.

He can be stoic, depressed, nonsensical, charming, ridiculous and an asshole all at once. He can go from Carl Spackler, a mentally unstable assistant grounds keeper who claims to have caddied for the Dali Lama, to Bob Harris, a lonely washed up Hollywood action star who meets an unlikely friend in Tokyo.

Bill Murray has long reached the point in his career where he could pursue any role he pleases, but the moment he proved his limitless range was as weatherman Phil Connors in “Groundhog Day.” Most people wouldn’t list the Harold Ramis-directed comedy as Murray’s career-defining performance. Hell, most people wouldn’t consider it Murray’s best performance in a Harold Ramis film, let alone his entire career. But if I had to show someone 100 years from now one film that encapsulates Bill Murray it would most definitely be “Groundhog Day.”

“Ghostbusters” is his funniest film, “Caddyshack” contains his most memorable lines and “Lost in Translation” shows off his considerable dramatic talent, but “Groundhog Day” combines all his greatest attributes in a little over an hour and a half. The role of Phil Connors is where comedian Bill Murray and thespian Bill Murray meet, and the result is a film that contains every great element of a Murray film.

His character makes the transition from a closed-minded, cold, pompous asshole with little regard for anyone but himself into a generous, kind, open-minded, charming, loving and genuine character. A lot of people believe that no one truly changes over the course of a lifetime, but Murray changed dramatically in 100 minutes, and most importantly he made the transformation feel genuine.

While Murray was stuck in purgatory, also known as Punxsutawney, PA, he is compellingly angry, frustrated, mischievous and hilarious. It is as though Murray’s entire complicated personality is on display at some point or another in the surprisingly existential PG film. If you are willing to look past the horrific poster, and the Andie MacDowell’s inability to convey emotion (seriously, why was she so popular in the early-mid 90s?), “Groundhog Day” is a one-stop shop to see all of Murray’s talents on full display, and a hell of a film.

Sure, Murray has been funnier and dealt with more complex characters in other movies, but “Groundhog Day” combines the fire of that Second City alumnus who fought Chevy Chase before his opening monologue at SNL and respected actor who was nominated for Best Actor at the Oscars. What could be greater than that?