Dark Knight gets inceptioned

"You mustn't be afraid to dream a little bigger darling."
--Tom Hardy (Inception)

"You must become more than just a man in the mind of your opponent."
--Liam Neeson (Batman Begins)

Christopher Nolan doesn't disappoint when it comes to suspense. He gives you a taste and then says nothing, but Dark Knight Rises seems to be on the same track as its predecessor.

Similar to the first Joker photos, Nolan released a photo of Bane, which gives you a small taste of how he will look, but doesn't give much away. One thing is for sure. Tom Hardy (Inception, RocknRolla, Black Hawk Down) has packed on massive amounts of muscle for the role. He isn't exactly a small guy to begin with, but he looks pretty impressive.

I assure you. Poison Ivy will not be dragging this Bane around on a leash.

Aside from Hardy, Nolan is also bringing back some big names from Inception. Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Brick, Ten Thing I Hate About You, Killshot), a once potential villain for the current film has been cast as Beat Cop John Blake. Marion Cottillard (La Vie En Rose, Nine, Big Fish) has also been cast as Wayne Enterprises employee Miranda Tate. In true Nolan fashion nothing has been revealed about either character, but there is some speculation that Gordon-Levitt's character could eventually become a future villain. Whether that actually happens remains to be seen, because this is the last Batman film that Nolan will be writing/directing. He will stay on as a producer for future films, which means I will be preparing for the return of the Schumaker Bat-nipples.

I am intrigued by the rumor of Liam Neeson possibly returning for a cameo as Ra's al Ghul, but not nearly as much as I am excited about the return of Joker...okay Private Joker from Full Metal Jacket. Matthew Modine (Full Metal Jacket, Any Given Sunday, Weeds) has been cast as politician/villain Nixon (yes named after that Nixon), which should be good if any of you remember his appearance on Weeds as the sleazy Real Estate/Megachurch head: Sullivan Groff.

At any rate, Dark Knight appears to be the only superhero film that has me interested at all, but I am sure that will change once I see a little more from The Avengers film that Joss Whedon is writing and directing. It's really too bad that the lead-up films have not had me excited in the least.