Ramis’ instincts were to make Groundhog Day more accessible, and the ending he gave the movie is perfect.
After enduring countless repetitions of February 2, Phil Connors finally breaks free of his time loop.
Rubin, who created the concept for Groundhog Day, and later co-wrote its screenplay with director Harold Ramis, originally structured the film very differently.
This is all pretty well-known; Ramis talked about it on his commentary track for the film, and mentioned it in numerous interviews.