Oddly enough, over 43 years of Super Bowls there isn't a single movie entirely dedicated to the day the Earth stands still.

Pro football's splashiest event has always been an extra in the background: a target for terrorists in the final reel of an overlong thriller (Black Sunday), the motivation for a dolphin kidnapping (Ace Ventura: Pet Detective), another reason for Vincent Gallo to brood (Buffalo '66) and a place where Bill Murray as Hunter S. Thompson finds yet another reason to catch a buzz (Where the Buffalo Roam).

Where are the Joe Namath or Jim McMahon biopics? Or something even juicier, like the vice-fueled heydays of the Dallas Cowboys? (Although North Dallas Forty is a reasonable facsimile.) I'd settle for Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly as tailgaters trying to sneak in the big game. Heck, make it Dane Cook and Tom Green and I'd be happy. Well, maybe I'm exaggerating there.

Nope, if you want to see Super Bowl action on screen - as something besides window dressing - the closest you'll come is Heaven Can Wait, starring Warren Beatty as an L.A. Rams (yes, L.A.: this is 1978, after all) quarterback named Joe Pendleton, mistakenly dragged to the afterlife before his time. Mr. Jordan (James Mason) tries correcting the problem by inserting Joe's soul into the body of a tycoon set up for murder by his wife (Dyan Cannon) and "personal private executive secretary" (Charles Grodin).

Beatty also co-directed with Buck Henry and co-wrote with Elaine May, but more impressively looked pretty darn good tossing around the pigskin. He's also sexy as usual with then-lover Julie Christie, playing an environmentalist falling in love with the old codger she believes Joe to be. Don't forget Beatty's terrific chemistry with Jack Warden as Joe's best friend and coach, who eventually believes in miracles, even if nobody believes him.

Heaven Can Wait has fairly authentic gridiron action, even in hindsight. And it's flat-out one of the best romantic comedies ever, with a finale that never fails to get me choked up. YouTube offers that post-game dramedy, after Mr. Jordan's final soul-shifting move. Enjoy!