A to Z Challenge – D – Cult Classics: Dark City, Donnie Darko, Def Leppard, Dragonflight, and More! Plus X-Files and Blog Blitz.

A to Z Challenge – Cult Classics – D

Movies-Music-Sci-fi Book-Bloggers-Dragon Term

Movies –

Dark City
Director Alex Proyas’ first film after The Crow, the movie is a mind bend of lost memories and a city with no sun that moves every night. Released in 1998, it was nominated for Hugo and Saturn awards.

Donnie Darko
Featuring a young man who escapes a bizarre accident and has visions of a giant bunny, this film is good until the end–then it becomes brilliant. It won many awards and became a midnight showing staple.

Music Albums -

Def Leppard –Hysteria
One of the best-selling albums of all time at twelve times Platinum, it produced seven hits. It also heralded the return of drummer Rick Allen and was the last album before Steve Clark died.

Science Fiction Books –

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep – Phillip K. Dick
The novel that inspired the classic film Blade Runner, it was nominated for a Nebula and won a Locus award. Published in 1968, it’s been adapted to radio, theater, comics, and more.

Dragonflight – Anne McCaffrey
The first of the Dragonriders of Pern series, it was the first science fiction book to appear on the New York Times Best Seller list in 1968. It also won both the Nebula and Hugo for McCaffrey, the first time either was claimed by a woman.

Bloggers –

Dean K. Miller
Want a little inspiration? A song, a poem, a snippet? The thoughts of a reflective author? A steadfast friend? Then visit Dean today!

Diane Salerni
Want some diversity from a published author? Want a glimpse of the whole picture? Want to meet someone who gives it her all? Dianne is your winner!

Dragon of the Stars Term –

Dragon –
The Dragon is the legendary ship that vanished twenty years ago. Build by the Hyrathians in secret, she was to be their greatest weapon. Now she might be their only chance for survival. All Aden has to do is find the elusive ship…

Dragon of the Stars comes out April 7, 2015
Check out the site What Are the Kargrandes? for clues as to how they tie into the story.
And just a couple days left to join the Thunderclap campagin for the book!

To prepare for the launch of Dragon of the Stars next week, my publisher has dropped the price of CassaStorm to .99 cents at Amazon. (If you prefer ePub, it’s also on sale at Dancing Lemur Press.) CassaStorm is my highest rated book, winner of the Pinnacle Achievement Book Award, and was an eFestival of Books 2014 Winner. Today is the last day of the sale!

If anyone would like to Tweet about the sale, I would appreciate it:
Award-winning & best-selling CassaStorm by Alex J. Cavanaugh on sale for .99! http://tinyurl.com/q8dq3se @alexjcavanaugh #99cents #scifi

Ninja News

DL Hammons started the Blog Blitz two years ago, and it’s an awesome way to support and encourage other bloggers. If you aren’t a part of it, please consider joining.

Here’s some weird news from Blastr: the X-Files finale almost crossed over with West Wing.
"We had hoped to use the West Wing's Oval Office set. And in fact, we'd even at one point considered asking Martin Sheen who played the president on the West Wing to do this scene, which would have been a nice sort of wink." 
Really glad they didn’t!

Watched either of the films? One of the millions who owns Hysteria? Read those books? Familiar with my featured bloggers? What do you think of that proposed X-Files ending? Want to ride on the Dragon? You first have to tell me - What Are the Kargrandes…?

Great Science Fiction Movies You May Have Missed

Some science fiction movies that may have slipped under your radar...


A dystopian look at the future…

Equilibrium 2002

Staring Christian Bale, Sean Bean, William Fichtner, Emily Watson, Taye Diggs

In a futuristic world, a strict regime has eliminated war by suppressing emotions: books, art and music are strictly forbidden and feeling is a crime punishable by death. Cleric John Preston (Bale) is a top ranking government agent responsible for destroying those who resist the rules. When he misses a dose of Prozium, a mind-altering drug that hinders emotion, Preston, who has been trained to enforce the strict laws of the new regime, suddenly becomes the only person capable of overthrowing it.

Time travel and an aircraft carrier - what more could you want?

The Final Countdown 1980

Staring Kirk Douglas, Martin Sheen, Charles Durning

The USS Nimitz, a modern-day nuclear aircraft carrier, is drawn through a time warp from 1980 to a couple days before the Japanese assault on Pearl Harbor, and the crew must decide whether to launch a preemptive strike against the incoming Japanese carrier fleet with their more advanced air wing, or allow history to take its course, which might not happen since they had rescued Senator Chapman, who disappeared shortly before the attack, from his death.

Space man + Vikings + space creature = great time!

Outlander 2008

Staring Jim Caviezel, John Hurt, Ron Perlman

During the reign of the Vikings, Kainan, a man from a far-off world, crash lands on Earth, bringing with him an alien predator known as the Moorwen. Though both man and monster are seeking revenge for violence committed against them, Kainan leads the alliance to kill the Moorwen by fusing his advanced technology with the Viking's Iron Age weaponry.

One of Cronenberg’s earliest and best.

Scanners 1981

Staring Michael Ironside, Patrick McGoohan

There are 4 billion people on earth. 237 are Scanners. They have the most terrifying powers ever created... and they are winning.
Darryl Revok is the most powerful of all the scanners, and is the head of the underground scanner movement for world domination. Scanners have great psychic power, strong enough to control minds; they can inflict enormous pain/damage on their victims. Doctor Paul Ruth finds a scanner that Revok hasn't, and converts him to their cause - to destroy the underground movement.

Bizarre mind trip of suspense…

Cube 1997

Staring David Hewlett, Nicole de Boer

Six total strangers awaken one day to find themselves alone in a cubical maze. Once they meet, they work together using their given skills and talents to survive the deadly traps which guard many of the colored cubic rooms. Using Leaven's mathematical skills, they press forward, upward, and downward through the hatches to try and find the outer shell.

Alex Proyas’s intricate and incredible masterpiece.

Dark City 1998

Staring Rufus Sewell, Jennifer Connelly, John Hurt, Kiefer Sutherland

John's life has become a nightmare. He is hunted by the police for a series of murders he knows nothing about, a woman who claims to be his wife is after him, and so is a mysterious "doctor". But his worst trouble is the strangers, a series of vastly powerful beings who seem to manipulate just about everything in the city, and want him because of the extraordinary powers he manifested. John decides to find out what is happening in his city; why is it always night? And why can nobody tell him a way to leave the city?

Science fiction writing at its very best!

The Lost Room 2006 mini-series

Staring Peter Krause, Julianna Margulies, Kevin Pollack

A Policeman uncovers a key while working on a murder case. The key can open every door and take him into a motel room, but if you leave there something that doesn't belong to you- it will be gone as soon as the room "restarts"... He discovers that there are objects hidden in whole the world. They don't look special, but they have special powers. When his daughter is kidnapped and he is framed for killing his partner, he must find a way to bring her back from the room, while working with different groups and men searching for all the objects. But who can he really trust when everybody goes crazy once touching the objects...

And in case you missed this outstanding Terry Gilliam flick – funny, quirky, strange, and with little people!

Time Bandits 1981

Staring John Cleese, Sean Connery, Shelly Duvall, Ian Holm, David Rappaport, David Warner

A young boy's wardrobe contains a time hole. Through this hole an assortment of short people (i.e. dwarfs) come while escaping from their master, the supreme being. They take Kevin with them on their adventures through time from Napoleonic times to the Middle Ages to the early 1900s, to the time of Legends and the Fortress of Ultimate Darkness where they confront Evil.


What else would you select? What outstanding science fiction film has not been seen by the masses or enjoyed a decent box office take?