Batman fans received what will probably be the most important news of the pre-release for "The Dark Knight Rises": The film actually exists.

As we reported, Christopher Nolan screened a rough cut of his final Batman movie for Warner Bros. brass last week, and the legion of fans breathed a collective sigh of relief. We now know that a completed version of the film is real, and it's not just a trailer we've watched obsessively since ... December?

Yup, it's been three months since we've seen any new footage from the most anticipated movie of 2012, and we've felt every Batman-less minute of it. You go three months with nothing more than a squeak from the new Nolan Batman movie, and you start to think some paranoid thoughts. Is the movie ever coming out? Is the movie even real? But worry not, borderline psychotic Gothamite: "The Dark Knight Rises" is real and edging toward the picture-locked goal line. There's no official word on the reaction to the rough-cut screening, as of yet.

Thankfully, the news of the rough cut closely preceded the leak of a new plot synopsis, taken from the plaque of a film cell that will eventually go on sale over at Film Cells Ltd. The cell shows Batman, Bane and Commissioner Gordon with the caption: "When Commissioner Gordon stumbles upon a plot to destroy the city from within, Bruce Wayne gets back into action as the Batman. Waiting for him is the mysterious Selina Kyle and Bane, a lethal adversary on a crusade to tear apart Batman's legacy piece by piece."

Granted, the "synopsis" amounts to "Hey, Batman, Bane and Commissioner Gordon are all going to be in the same movie. Can't really talk about it," but we can't really complain about new information at this point.

In the realm of Batman rumors that could possibly affect you — wait, let me clarify. This rumor might affect you if you were lucky enough to snag passes to San Diego Comic-Con before they sold out in 6.5 seconds. There's a chance Nolan could appear at San Diego Comic-Con this year. It would be the first time ever for the director, since his previous two Batman movies debuted before the convention. This time around, Batman will rise the week after SDCC, so speculation has already begun that Nolan could make his final bow at the geekiest of all gatherings.

If you start to consider that, the nerdy possibilities are endless. What will the panel include? Who from the cast will show up? Are we talking about an actual screening here? Can I go? Why can't I go? Please let me go!

Listen, I'm all for going into a highly anticipated movie not knowing much, and I'm glad that my spoiler levels for "Rises" have been kept to a generous low. But there should be a little more out there to tease us. In the race of the summer tentpoles, "The Dark Knight Rises" is resting on its laurels while "Prometheus" and "The Avengers" are dropping kick-ass trailers like they were nothing. It's getting to the point where Warner Bros. might need to start considering that slapping "Christopher Nolan" and "Batman" on a theater marquee might not be enough to win the summer.

And when you do finally cut a second theatrical trailer, Warner Bros., please spare us the 10-second trailer of the trailer. Those are just terrible.

[Ed. Note: A previous mention of a "four-hour rough cut" of "The Dark Knight Rises" was intended as a humorous exaggeration; our columnist did not have any information on the actual length of the director's rough cut.]

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