Wow. Just wow. Wow.

Can Christopher Nolan do anything wrong? Has the guy ever made a bad movie? Let me answer: No. He’s this generation’s Steven Spielberg, even his so-so movies are unanimously loved by audiences and critics. The only sad thing is The Dark Knight Rises, if you believe Christian Bale and Nolan, is the last outing in this acclaimed and beloved Batman franchise. So while I’m beyond excited for the release of The Dark Knight Rises on July 20, 2012, it’s also a little bittersweet.

By the looks of this full-length trailer, it also might be a big fat punch to the soft parts. We don’t know the full extent of the story, except some of the characters – Bane (Tom Hardy), Catwoman (Anne Hathaway) – and that it’s set eight years after the events of The Dark Knight. From the look of the trailer, Bane (the guy wearing Heath Ledger’s Brokeback Mountain jacket and a futuristic Hannibal Lecter breathing mask) is looking to lay a world of hurt on Gotham and Batman/Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale). Considering we see a smashed cowl in the poster above and a dude, possibly Bruce Wayne/Batman, limping with a cane in, what might be, Wayne Manor, this could be evidence that Nolan and company have possibly incorporated  happenings from the 1993 comic, The Man Who Broke the Bat, wherein Bane learns Batman’s secret identity, ambushes him at Wayne Manor and attacks him in the Batcave, breaking his back and leaving him a paraplegic. I’m not sure the timeline of events in The Dark Knight Rises, but I’d bet Batman gets his ass kicked and then comes back for redemption. Take a close look at the trailer below and at the teaser trailer and let me know if you think I’m on the right track. Regardless of the story, I can’t imagine this movie being nothing short of pure win.

The Dark Knight Rises is directed by Christopher Nolan and stars Christian Bale, Anne Hathaway, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, Tom Hardy, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Gary Oldman and Marion Cotillard. It rolls into theaters on July 20, 2012.