Palm Springs

Palm Springs premise is based on Nyles (Andy Sandberg) being stuck in one of those infinite time loop situations you've heard about at a wedding in Palm Springs. This immediately draws you to think of Groundhog Day but there's one key difference to this film- Nyles isn't the only person stuck in the loop. 

Sarah (Cristin Milioti) ends up in the time loop too and for a while it's fairly classic time loop stuff from elaborate ways of committing suicide to perfecting skills to knowing every detail about the day. It gradually develops into a love story between Nyles and Sarah which is an excellent idea. The time loop adds a different angle to the love story, making it somehow infinite and full of possibility in a way a more conventional story wouldn't be. 

Interestingly, unlike many of these type of stories there's an attempt to use physics to explain the phenomenon and the way out isn't through love or anything vague like that but is gaining a knowledge of physics to work a way out. It's an interesting idea to have the time loop be the setting of the story yet not really what the story is about and when a potential way out is posited it's interesting to see how the characters react to that.

Whilst the idea is derivative, I thought the film breathed new life into the concept of time loops. It's just one of those feel-good, escapist films which discusses the meaning of life and ends with hope for the future. 

Andy Samberg basically plays the same character he usually plays which is fine as he does it well and Cristin Milloti is wonderful. There's also an excellent small role for JK Simmons, a sort of antagonist to Nyles. The extended cast are also a lot of fun with many minor character getting a moment to do something amusing. 

A really lovely and warm film which I think will quickly become the sort of film I regularly come back to.