"The Dark Knight Rises" is basically "Inception." And I'm okay with that.

Okay, it's not REALLY. But the cast of the third Christopher Nolan Batman movie is largely the same as the cast of "Inception." Tom Hardy and Joseph Gordon-Levitt signed on earlier, and today the news came out that Marion Cotillard is also onboard. I'm thrilled to see her cast. I think she didn't get enough credit for her role in "Inception." Try to imagine anyone else in her role, and see if they could pull it off - her haunting beauty alone made that role unique, but she was also sympathetic despite being the buzzkill in every dream. I can only hope they give her a meaty role in "The Dark Knight Rises." If she didn't impress you in "Inception," go watch her Academy Award winning performance in "La Vie En Rose" and see if you're still unimpressed.

Now we have two strong female leads. I've been unsure about Anne Hathaway being cast in a lead role, but after the dullsville that was Katie Holmes and Maggie Gyllenhaal in the previous two films, I'm just relieved to see some quality actresses cast. Not that Gyllenhaal isn't talented, but she was not right for the role and, to be entirely shallow for a moment, she's not pretty. Hathaway is a coin toss. She absolutely can act, but she's more well known for lighter roles. Or maybe I'm ambiguous because I can't seem to get rid of the taste of the Academy Awards this year.

I'm very happy the backlash against Nolan hasn't started yet for hiring the same team of actors. I'm sure one will come eventually, and all the "Inception 2" jokes will get passed around, but directors reusing actors is nothing new. If it's not broke, don't fix it. Just look at the frequent collaborators section on Wikipedia for Martin Scorsese - if you get the chance to work with a brilliant director once, why not do it again?

I praised "Inception" before it came out because the cast was amazing and it felt like Nolan had read my mind and cast people I love. Well, once again, I'll get to see all these great actors together onscreen. Now if only we could bring Cillian Murphy back somehow!