The 7 Most Awesome Moments From Christopher Nolan Movies

Like a phoenix from the ashes, The Dark Knight Rises again. Ladies, strap on your cat suits. Gentlemen, don your rubber body armor with fake abs. Today’s your day. Let your fanboy superhero cosplay freak flag fly while you check out this badass preview:

And if that wasn’t enough to get you pumped about The Dark Knight Rises, we’ve rounded up the seven most awesome moments from Christopher Nolan movies. He’s a celebrated director that’s taken cinema and Batman to new heights. SPOILERS AHEAD. Here are some of his greatest hits:

1. The Big Reveal in The Prestige

   It’s number one with a bullet, and it’s classic Christopher Nolan. The final scene in The Prestige: we learn, after an arduous few hours of guessing and being lead down false rabbit holes, that there are twins and drowning clones. Great dialogue, great reveal, and the most classic Nolan WTF Film Ending Moment. It leaves us speechless, every time.

2. The Interrogation Scene, The Dark Knight

   Batman wears dark colors and looks foreboding. The Joker wears bright colors and features a perma-smile. But when it’s good versus bad, the bat is your best bet. This scene features little else but the acting chops of Christian Bale and the late Heath Ledger under the direction of Nolan. Coupled with costumes, the right lighting, stellar makeup, and a keen understanding of the characters’ long saga — it doesn’t get much better than that.

3. The End of Inception

   The final five minutes of a movie usually wrap things up in an easily digestible package, and everyone goes home feeling happy and great. Not so for director Christopher Nolan, who prefers to incept your moviegoing experience. Is this real life, or a dream world? What’s going on with that top? It looks rickety. That’ll blow your mind.

4. “I’m Batman!” from Batman Begins

   Before The Dark Knight claimed his title, Batman had to Begin. True Batman believers cheered for a fleshed out antihero, and what they got was the first spooky and mysterious instance of Nolan’s Batman claiming his name. This is what a real Dark Knightlooks like.

5. Almost Every Scene In Memento

   What do you do when you can’t feel time? Leonard doesn’t know, either. Memento was an early and serious critical hit for Nolan, and a film that begs to be watched several times. A deconstructed picture, there are always several messages to glean per scene. There are riddles, clues, and keys everywhere, but they’re in reverse chronological order — which makes the already compelling Mementoa thriller of the highest capacity. Here’s the infamous “bed scene” — containing more inside than you think:

6. The Hospital Scene, The Dark Knight

   How do you top being The Joker? Creating Two Face. How do you top creating Two Face? By wearing a candy striper dress and blowing up an entire hospital. Phenomenally shot, paced, and acted, you won’t soon forget these five grisly minutes.

7. The Joker Is Clearly A Psycho Terrorist, Hellbent on Gotham/Self Destruction The Dark Knight

   And because it’s all about Batman, we thought we’d give more love to The Joker. If you ever wanted to see what a truly destructive psycho terrorist looks like when he’s in the throes of wanton municipal destruction, look no further. These tiny moments of classic cinema are common in Nolan’s films, and truly pit the director at the top of his field. And, with his Dark Knight, Nolan’s star also rises.