Christopher Nolan makes an INCEPTION

Batman Begins.

The Dark Knight.

The Prestige.

Christopher Nolan has made some of my favorite movies. The thoughtful craftsman’s next project, Inception, is shaping up to find its place on the list.

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Nolan directs Michael Caine and Christian Bale

The top-secret plot has been described as “a contemporary sci-fi/action story set within the architecture of the mind.” And though some reports suggest this is Nolan’s first flirtation with science fiction, I’d argue that The Prestige is one of the finest sci-fi films ever made. But we’ll debate that after I finally finish my review of The Dark Knight, which is still kicking around in my brain because I don’t know how to do it justice.

Anyway, you can read more about the initial deal here.

Nolan has already cast Leonardo DiCaprio as the leading man, which is excellent news. DiCaprio has grown into a truly great actor who’s not afraid to be emotionally fearless, and that’s exactly the kind of performer Nolan gets the most out of.

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Leonardo DiCaprio

And now the rest of the cast is coming together. It sounds like DiCaprio is playing some kind of CEO, with French beauty Marion Cotillard as his wife. (Cotillard stars with Johnny Depp and Nolan’s Batman, Christian Bale, in this summer’s John Dillinger thriller Public Enemies from director Michael Mann; you can watch the trailer for that one here.)

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Marion Cotillard

Ellen Page (Juno, X-Men: The Last Stand) will play a grad student described by The Hollywood Reporter as DiCaprio’s “sidekick.” I have a crush on Ellen Page. But that’s beside the point.

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Ellen Page

And what Nolan film would be complete without one of his go-to actors? This time it’s Cillian Murphy, who was spectacularly spooky, creepy, and evil as Dr. Jonathan “Scarecrow” Crane in both of the Batman movies.

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Cillian Murphy

Heath Ledger deserves every bit of awe and praise he’s received for becoming The Joker, but Murphy was just as scary in his own way. Have you seen seen him in Sunshine? You should.

Nolan is shooting for a 2010 release for this one, and hopefully he’ll do the next Batman after that.

Keep your eyes here for more information about this project!

They, Robots

USA Today has published this list (with descriptions) of many of the new and returning bio-mechanical alien shape-shifters we’ll be seeing when big robots throw smaller robots through a theater near you in Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen on June 24.

My favorite airplane of all time is the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird, and my favorite toy as a kid was Jetfire, who transformed from a robot into a high-tech fighter jet with armor and booster add-ons that allowed him to FLY IN SPACE.

So I should be happy that Jetfire is not only going to be in Revenge of the Fallen, but that they’ve also turned him into an SR-71 for the movie, right?

But unfortunately the brave robot warrior-scientist who spent his summers protecting the childhood me from evil robots in the woods behind my parents’ house has apparently been dumbed down for the movie, because the description says he’s old and worn down and forgetful. Hopefully they’ll fix him by the time the movie’s over.

I loved the first Transformers. It was huge fun with amazing special effects, lots of thrills, and lots of humor.

And Megan Fox.

The sequel looks even bigger; you can check out the trailer right here.