Sony Armageddon Hoax in Crashing Bad Taste

'Daily Show' host also baffled over contraception controversy

(NEWSER) - Jon Stewart took a week off from the Daily Show , and in that time, the nation managed to hand Rick Santorum three primary victories . "What the hell, America?" Stewart asked last night. "I leave you alone for one week. One week!" And it wasn't just Santorum's transition to frontrunner that Stewart missed: He also had to get caught up on the White House vs. the Catholic Church fight over birth control. Fortunately, that fight is already over, thanks to President Obama's compromise —right? Wrong. More»

Movie reviews: Rachel McAdams, Channing Tatum can't save amnesia romance

(NEWSER) - In The Vow, Rachel McAdams plays a woman who must learn to love her husband again after amnesia wipes her memory. It's no surprise it was released ahead of Valentine's Day: It's pure mushiness, critics say.

• In the New York Daily News , Elizabeth Weitzman calls the film a "down-the-middle, by-the-numbers fantasy, in which no one is too quirky or interesting or challenging in any way." Still, "there’s no shortage of viewers ready to embrace an old-fashioned, guilty-pleasure romance."

To the tune of more than $1M

(NEWSER) - Now that Stephen Colbert is no longer running for president of the United States of South Carolina, he has taken back control of his super PAC—just in time for today's deadline to file financial disclosure reports. Colbert announced last night that he would post the paperwork online at midnight, and the New York Times reports that his Americans for a Better Tomorrow, Tomorrow super PAC has raised a whopping $1,023,121.24. A few boldfaced names are listed as donors, including Gavin Newsom, California's lieutenant governor, and Bradley Whitford, West Wing star. More»

Maher calls conservative propaganda 'paranoid,' 'fictional'

(NEWSER) - With conservatives increasingly comparing the strategy of President Obama to the playbook of Saul Alinsky, Bill Maher has two angry responses: "One, why would you invite my outrage by suggesting such a specious link? ... And two, who the fuck is Saul Alinsky?" In a clip picked up by Mediaite , Maher notes that the Alinsky meme is going mainstream, with Newt Gingrich recently ranting that the current election represents "American exceptionalism versus the radicalism of Saul Alinksy." Deadpans Maher, "if Newt hates him, he's probably a divorce lawyer." More»

Turning away from stardom 'common sense,' says actor

(NEWSER) - Bad boy Sean Penn is at it again. The eternally angry actor is blasting celebrity as an "obscene disease." "I don't think it's an overstatement to say that it's an obscene disease of celebrity that's taken over far too much of the life we live. I think it's a disease that's diminished the quality of life," Penn told the Huffington Post in an interview plugging his latest movie. "It's clearly something that I've been compromised by. But for the culture at large, there is this kind of herd commitment. I think it's just become cheap." More»