neXt: The next generation, covered now

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Battle of the Oscars

The Southeast Missourian asked a few high school students which movies they thought deserved the little naked golden man that everybody on the big screen wants so badly.

We got four students from Jackson High School, Notre Dame Regional High School and Central High School to fill out our (shortened) Oscar Quiz. Each student is represented by a different action figure.

The OSCAR® nominees

~Performance by an actor in a leading role

• George Clooney in "Michael Clayton" (Warner Bros.)
• Daniel Day-Lewis in "There Will Be Blood" (Paramount Vantage and Miramax)
• Johnny Depp in "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" (DreamWorks and Warner Bros., Distributed by DreamWorks/Paramount)
• Tommy Lee Jones in "In the Valley of Elah" (Warner Independent)
• Viggo Mortensen in "Eastern Promises" (Focus Features)

~Performance by an actress in a leading role

• Cate Blanchett in "Elizabeth: The Golden Age" (Universal)
• Julie Christie in "Away from Her" (Lionsgate)
• Marion Cotillard in "La Vie en Rose" (Picturehouse)
• Laura Linney in "The Savages" (Fox Searchlight)
• Ellen Page in "Juno" (Fox Searchlight)

~Best animated feature film of the year

• "Persepolis" (Sony Pictures Classics), Marjane Satrapi and Vincent Paronnaud
• "Ratatouille" (Walt Disney), Brad Bird
• "Surf's Up" (Sony Pictures Releasing), Ash Brannon and Chris Buck

~Achievement in directing

• "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" (Miramax/Pathé Renn), Julian Schnabel
• "Juno" (Fox Searchlight), Jason Reitman
• "Michael Clayton" (Warner Bros.), Tony Gilroy
• "No Country for Old Men" (Miramax and Paramount Vantage), Joel Coen and Ethan Coen
• "There Will Be Blood" (Paramount Vantage and Miramax), Paul Thomas Anderson

~Best documentary feature

• "No End in Sight" (Magnolia Pictures)
• "Operation Homecoming: Writing the Wartime Experience" (The Documentary Group)
• "Sicko" (Lionsgate and The Weinstein Co.)
• "Taxi to the Dark Side" (THINKFilm)
• "War/Dance" (THINKFilm)

~Best motion picture of the year

• "Atonement" (Focus Features)
• "Juno" (Fox Searchlight)
• "Michael Clayton" (Warner Bros.)
• "No Country for Old Men" (Miramax and Paramount Vantage)
• "There Will Be Blood" (Paramount Vantage and Miramax)

Mindy Siebert

Junior at Notre Dame Regional High School, goes to the movies once or twice a month.

"Juno was really funny. I like comedies or love stories."

~Best Actor

George Clooney in "Michael Clayton" (Warner Bros.)

~Best Actress

Ellen Page in "Juno" (Fox Searchlight)

~Best Animated Film

"Ratatouille" (Walt Disney) -- Brad Bird

~Best Director

"Juno" (Fox Searchlight) Jason Reitman

~ Best Documentary

"No End in Sight" (Magnolia Pictures) A Representational Pictures Production, Charles Ferguson and Audrey Marrs

~Best Movie

"Juno" (Fox Searchlight) A Mandate Pictures/Mr. Mudd Production, Lianne Halfon, Mason Novick and Russell Smith, Producers

Tyler Eggimann

Senior at Jackson High School, watches movies "a lot."

~Best Actor

Daniel Day-Lewis in "There Will Be Blood" (Paramount Vantage and Miramax)

~Best Actress

Ellen Page in "Juno" (Fox Searchlight)

~Best Animated Film

"Ratatouille" (Walt Disney) -- Brad Bird

~Best Director

"No Country for Old Men" (Miramax and Paramount Vantage) Joel Coen and Ethan Coen

~Best Documentary

"No End in Sight" (Magnolia Pictures) A Representational Pictures Production, Charles Ferguson and Audrey Marrs

~Best Movie

"No Country for Old Men" (Miramax and Paramount Vantage) A Scott Rudin/Mike Zoss Production, Scott Rudin, Ethan Coen and Joel Coen, Producers

Shawn Easley

Nninth-grader at Notre Dame Regional High School, goes to the movies once a week or once every other week.

"Juno is the best. They usually don't talk about underage pregnancy like that. I liked it when they called her 'Fertile Myrtle.' That was my favorite part."

~Best Actor

Johnny Depp in "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" (DreamWorks and Warner Bros., Distributed by Dream Daniel Day-Lewis Works/Paramount)

~Best Actress

Ellen Page in "Juno" (Fox Searchlight)

~Best Animated Film

"Ratatouille" (Walt Disney) -- Brad Bird

~Best Director

"Juno" (Fox Searchlight) Jason Reitman

~Best Documentary

"Taxi to the Dark Side" (THINKFilm) An X-Ray Production, Alex Gibney and Eva Orner

~Best Movie

"Juno" (Fox Searchlight) A Mandate Pictures/Mr. Mudd Production, Lianne Halfon, Mason Novick and Russell Smith, Producers

Gabe Cox

Ninth-grader at Central High School, goes to the movies a "few times a month."

"'Across the Universe' is my favorite. It's kind of like a musical, but it takes place in the '70s and during the war. The visuals in it were really good, and the computer generation was different."

~Best Actor

George Clooney in "Michael Clayton" (Warner Bros.)

~Best Actress

Ellen Page in "Juno" (Fox Searchlight)

~Best Animated Film

N/A

~Best Director

"Juno" (Fox Searchlight) Jason Reitman

~Best Documentary

"Sicko" (Lionsgate and The Weinstein Company) A Dog Eat Dog Films Production, Michael Moore and Meghan O'Hara

~Best Movie

"No Country for Old Men" (Miramax and Paramount Vantage) A Scott Rudin/Mike Zoss Production, Scott Rudin, Ethan Coen and Joel Coen, Producers

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neXt up

FRIDAY

• New Movies

"Be Kind Rewind" Rated PG-13, run time 1 hr 41 mins; Cape West Cine

"Vantage Point" Rated PG-13, run time 1 hr 30 mins; Town Plaza Cinema

"Witless Protection" Rated PG-13, run time 1 hr 37 mins; Cape West Cine

Extreme Trivia @ Jackson Sports Grill, 8:30 p.m.

SATURDAY

SEMO Trivia Night: benefit for Alzheimer's Association, VFW Post 3838, 6:30 p.m.

SUNDAY

Faculty Recital featuring Gary Miller @ Old St. Vincent[']s Church, 3 p.m.

Motown Sounds of Saxy Jazz @ Kimbeland Country Club, Jackson, 3 to 6 p.m., open to the public.

Poetry Out Loud @ Academic Hall Auditorium, Southeast Missouri State University, 3 p.m.

NEXT WEEK

GAMES

Frontlines: Fuel of War, X360, PC

Turning Point: Fall of Liberty, X360, PS3, PC

DVDs

Beowulf, PG-13

30 Days of Night, R

Darkon, NR

CD

Latent Anxiety, Reaction

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Who's neXt

SCHOLARSHIPS

Lillian Jordan

Paige Rampley

• Eathan Deauster and Nigelle Cochran of Cape Girardeau have been awarded a President's Plus Scholarship and a Missouri Assessment Program Scholarship to attend Southeast Missouri State University next year.
• Lillian Jordan of Cape Girardeau and Jessica Kidd of Chaffee, Mo., have been awarded a President's Scholarship, a Missouri Leadership Award and a Missouri Assessment Program Scholarship to attend Southeast Missouri State University next year.
• Matt Long of Jackson and Evan Reischman of Chaffee, Mo., have been awarded a President's Scholarship and a Missouri Assessment Program Scholarship to attend Southeast Missouri State University next year.
• Paige Rampley of Benton, Mo., and Cody Goodpasture of Jackson have been awarded a Regents' Scholarship and a Missouri Assessment Program Scholarship to attend Southeast Missouri State University next year.
• Sara Blattel of Chaffee has been awarded a Regents' Scholarship, a Missouri Assessment Program Scholarship, and a Girl's State Leadership Award to attend Southeast Missouri State University next year.

HONORS

• Kari Bragg of Cape Girardeau made the fall semester president's list at Freed-Hardeman University in Henderson, Tenn.

SCHOOL NEWS

• Kelly Parents as Teachers will meet at 6:30 p.m. Feb. 26 in the elementary library. The meeting will focus on wellness, such as when to get checkups, and activities for National Dental Health Month will be provided.
• Kelly Elementary will hold an information session about kindergarten at 6:30 p.m. March 11 in the elementary gym. Upcoming kindergartners and parents will be able to take a bus ride, tour the school, learn expectations for kindergarten and receive a supply list. Kindergarten screenings will be held from 8:15 a.m. to 3 p.m. March 27 and 28 in the elementary library. Appointments can be made at the March 11 meeting or by calling 573-545-3541 after March 12. Parents should bring the child's immunization record, birth certificate, Social Security card and proof of address. To be eligible, children must turn 5 before Aug 1.
• Nell Holcomb will enroll and screen kindergartners and screen 3- and 4-year-olds March 28 at the school, 6547 Highway 177. Call 334-3644 for a necessary appointment. Parents should bring the child's immunization record, birth certificate, Social Security card and proof of address. To be eligible for kindergarten, children must turn 5 before Aug 1.
• Charter Communications is offering 10 college scholarships worth $1,000 each for Missouri and Illinois high school seniors. Applications can be obtained from high school guidance counselors. The deadline is March 14.

-- From staff reports