‘The Dark Knight Rises’ Poster Sets Fire to Gotham

With all this talk about 'The Avengers,' it's easy to forget that 'The Dark Knight Rises' is about to hit theaters in just about a month and a half. But don't go forgetting just yet. The 'Dark Knight Rises' marketing campaign has barely heated up yet but today could be the start of a month-long promotional blitz as the new (and final?) 'Dark Knight Rises' poster arrives online.

The poster was revealed on the 'Dark Knight Rises' Facebook page this afternoon and sadly this is the best quality we have at this point. We expect that to change soon and we'll update to a hi-res version once one become available. [UPDATE: The hi-res version is now included below.]

This new poster once again uses the "A Fire Will Rise" tagline, this time taking it literally. Batman strikes a hero pose while the city of Gotham burns behind him (with a similar bat-shaped pattern in the buildings to the original teaser poster). It's certainly a darker tone than anything in the 'Avengers' universe (though there were plenty of explosions and fires on display in downtown Manhattan.

The question is whether audiences still crave the dark and gritty atmosphere of the Batman films or has 'The Avengers' turned the tide? Frankly, there's room for both of these films and the thought that we have to pick one of the other is kinda silly. So far we have a great 'Avengers' movie and by all indications we'll have a great end to a Batman trilogy the same summer. That's a good thing.

Check out the 'Dark Knight Rises' poster below, which you can click to enlarge.