Still in the throes of a college football withdrawl, I decided to exchange my standard Saturday seat in front of my 20-inch screen for a seat in front of a 60-footer during a matinee showing of King Kong. It's a phenomenal movie, but even more phenomenal is the fact that Peter Jackson got to direct. He's currently one of the most powerful men in Hollywood, a sure thing at the box office, but if you haven't yet, go back and watch one of his early splatterfest films and ask yourself this: How did this man come to rule Hollywood? It's probably the greatest Cinderella story ever. (Imagine if Flutie's Hail Mary in the Orange Bowl had been immaculately intercepted, run back to the BC 11, fumbled, recovered by Flutie who then leads a Cal-like lateral fest back down the field to win the game. That's the football equivalent of the Peter Jackson story. Just watch Meet the Feebles and you'll understand.)

Kong is at once a satire and a tribute to old Hollywood. From the very first vintage looking credit the movie seems to poke fun while paying homage to the grand, old studio pictures of the early 20th century. Yes, it has a dinosaur fight sequences and an odd, thankfully unrequited, love story between beauty and beast, but at the heart of the story is an undeniable condemnation of the dark underbelly of the American Dream.

At first it may be difficult to say that there is a dark side to the American Dream. What is evil about the opportunity to start with nothing and work your way to the top, to become a self-made man? Mostly, it's a matter of scope. While the Land of Opportunity sounds pretty appealing when it is just that, opportunity, sometime after that you have to begin questioning at what cost you continue. You start out as a simple general store but eventually you can become Wal-Mart. To watch the megalomaniacal Carl Denham, as played by Jack Black, depserately seek the spectacle he set out to Skull Island to capture was a painful experience. I came out of this movie with a far greater sense of guilt towards the American capacity for destruction in the name of progress, than I did after viewing Syriana. (Mainly because I never knew what was going on.)

Somehow, this started me thinking about the NFL. While baseball is America's game in title only, football has the true stranglehold on the pulse of America. We're the only country that plays it, we're the only country that cares about it, and, while borrowing heavily from European games, we're the country that created it. Baseball has translated fairly easily to the Caribbean countries and the Far East, but you'll never see a World Football Championship because no one else is playing. (And yes, I'm totally ignoring the CFL and NFL Europe, they're both stocked with mostly American players anyway.)

But as the NFL's popularity continues to grow unchecked, are we starting to see some of that inner-darkness that Kong so beautifully exposed? There are now 31 teams in the league, it has it's own network, ticket prices and player salaries continue to soar, but at what cost? How much does the league at present resemble the loose associations of town teams that eventually became the NFL? Not much, but that's progress.

I'm not complaining about the NFL or the American way, in fact I love them both, but there were some striking similarities between the movie and the current campaign:

Colin Hanks as...Eli Manning

Hanks is unquestionably talented, but we're not quite sure if he'll ever escape the long shadow cast by his famous family.

Jack Black as...The Cincinnati Bengals

I was quite interested to gauge Black's performance in a serious role, but I couldn't help but think of the Bengals. At this point I think we all know that they're pretty good, but it is hard to forget about their bungled, comedic performances in past years. Same with the leader of Tenacious D, just try buying his final line in the movie after you've heard him sing "Take off your blouse and underpants..." you know the rest.

Naomi Watts as...David Carr behind the Texans offensive line

Never mind that there is definitely something going on between the starlet and ape, it's a miracle it ever got that far as Watts is so brutally shaken and jarred during her first encounter with Kong it's hard to believe she survived. Just like David Carr on Sundays!

Adrien Brody as...Peyton Manning

Brody plays the quietly heroic, effortlessly effective playwright who is always close to saving the day but never quite gets the job done. We may have to recast this role after this season.

And finally...

King Kong as...Terrell Owens

Both are imposing physical specimens, capable of jaw-dropping athletic feats, but it's also a given that upon arrival they'll  destroy any environment.

Maybe it was just a movie, maybe the NFL is fine as it is, but these are things I'm forced to think about without college football to fill my Saturdays. Thank God the bowls are only a few days away.

**I find the most needlessly difficult part about writing these blogs to be titling them, so from here on, for your reading pleasure, I'm including the discarded titels at the bottom.**

Discarded Titles: The Sport of Kongs, Thrilla vs. Godzilla, TO: The 81st Wonder of the World.