Next "Batman" movie announced for a July 2012 release

Warner Brothers announced today some sequel news that many a person has been waiting to hear: the release date for the next Christopher Nolan-directed Batman film. That date is July 20, 2012, which puts it four years and two days after the release of the wildly successful second installment, "The Dark Knight". No villians have been mentioned as of yet, but Christopher Nolan will once again be calling the shots and co-writing the screenplay with his brother Jonathan (based on an idea co-created by David Goyer). It's a safe bet that Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman and Gary Oldman will all return to their roles in the series.

To be honest, I couldn't be more excited. I thought "Batman Begins" and "The Dark Knight" were not only two of the best superhero films ever made, they were simply prime examples that with some care and talent on both sides of the camera, any film genre can make for great cinema. If I have any concern, it would be who the villain would be. After Heath Ledger's monumental turn as The Joker, someone is going to have a lot to live up to. If you shift the focus back to Bruce Wayne and Batman and their struggle following the events of "Dark Knight", a super baddie might not be the most important element of the next film. Given that Nolan has a knack for getting under the skin of the characters of his movies, I'm more than confident that he'll make every aspect work.

The film will not be shot in 3-D (THANK YOU!),but it is a pretty good bet that portions of the film will be shot in the IMAX format, a trick that worked wonders on "The Dark Knight" (so much so that I ended up seeing the movie five times in that format two years ago). Film is expected to commence early next year.