We now interrupt our regular Friday afternoon office beer-pong league for Say Whaaaa?, your convenient survey of the week's most confusing, bizarre and/or incomprehensible news stories. The Say Whaaaa Singers are tuned up and justly baffled about this week's highlights; take it away, fellas.
5. Stupid critic tricks
At least we can rest assured there is complete separation of advertising and editorial at the Los Angeles Times, where an ad blaring critic Betsy Sharkey's six-month-old praise of Chloe (from the Toronto Film Festival) ran today near her latest review, which panned the film. Say whaaaa? It's not even like Sharkey was irresponsibly blurbed; she just straight-up changed her mind. I guess she's entitled, but still. Awkward!
4. The Asshole vs. the Antichrist
There's nothing inherently ridiculous about James Cameron calling out Fox News host Glenn Beck as a "fucking asshole," or about Beck coming back with the pseudo-apology for once saying Cameron was "running for antichrist" after a 2007 documentary supposedly challenge the resurrection of Jesus. But when Cameron challenged Beck to a debate? And then daydreamed about "shooting it out" High Noon-style with global-warming deniers? Say whaaaa? Culture war has never been more spectacularly desirable. Let's make this happen. Now.
3. TrannyGate
GLAAD is at it again, urging the removal of the midnight movie Ticked-Off Trannies With Knives from the 2010 Tribeca Film Festival program. Interesting, particularly for a film was made by a gay director who said on this very site he had consulted with GLAAD since last month about properly promoting his tongue-in-cheek "trannysploitation" genre effort. Censorship issues aside, it was weirder still to see GLAAD later reference the Tribeca alums An Englishman in New York and the Oscar-nominated Transamerica as acceptable portraits of transgender life, while, according to a spokesman, "Ticked-Off Trannies With Knives does not meet, and in fact devalues, the standard of excellence established by the festival." Say whaaaa? Tell you what: If and when GLAAD ever decides to recognize the standard of excellence established by last year's revelatory Tribeca exposé Outrage, then we can talk about this year. And they'd still be wrong. Nice job making the Trannies the first must-see of the fest, by the way.
2. John Corbett, you lie!!!
The Sex and the City co-star insisted to Movieline with absolute, unwavering authority that his character Aidan Shaw does not make an appearance in the film's forthcoming sequel. And of course, he showed up a few days later in a new teaser for it. Say whaaaa? "I felt really bad because for the last six months every time somebody said, are you in this movie? I had to lie about it." Corbett later told Ellen DeGeneres, which wasn't much consolation for having lied through his teeth when a simple "I can't comment on that" would have sufficed. To the doghouse with thee, sir. OK, I guess you can come out now.
1. Variety hits bottom
The once-mighty trade paper has fallen on more than hard times. It's drowning in entitlement issues that might have peaked this week when editor Timothy Gray actually said that he would push to the Web any scoops not offered to Variety first. Say whaaaa? One can only imagine the epiphany that blossomed in Gray's mind as he finished his sentence -- "Oh, wait, maybe that's where those scoops are supposed to go." Actually, maybe not. Anyway, Variety is dead, long live Variety. Or something.