As Christopher Nolan and Christian Bale prepare to bring down the curtain on their Batman franchise with The Dark Knight Rises, a new book offers an extensive behind-the-scenes look at the state-of-the-art superhero saga.
Designed by Batman expert Chip Kidd, The Art and Making of the Dark Knight Trilogy features more than 300 color images, including the exclusive first-look production stills featured in the gallery above.
The book is loaded with concept art, storyboards and in-depth interviews with key Nolan collaborators (including cinematographer Wally Pfister and writers David S. Goyer and the director's brother, Jonathan Nolan).
The 304-page hardcover sheds light on how the brainy auteur retooled Batman's brooding movie persona, starting with 2005's Batman Begins. That movie and its followup, 2008's The Dark Knight, redefined superhero movies as thoroughly adult fare for 21st-century audiences.
The book also brims with cool factoids about the physical productions. For example, the bus that facilitates the Joker's escape during *The Dark Knight'*s opening heist sequence had to be completely taken apart and reassembled inside the "bank" because the building's existing doors were too small.
The Art and Making of the Dark Knight Trilogy also describes actor Bale's last-minute decision to replace his stunt double and stand on the ledge of the Sears Tower, 110 stories above the streets of the Windy City. "It was important for me to do that shot because I wanted to be able to say I did it," Bale explains to co-authors Jody Duncan Jesser and Janine Poutroy. "How often do you get to stand on the corner of the Sears Tower looking over all of Chicago?"
Win a Copy of The Art and Making of the Dark Knight Trilogy
Wired is teaming with publisher Abrams Books to give away one copy of The Art and Making of the Dark Knight Trilogy ($40), slated to hit bookstores July 20. To qualify for the contest, comment below on the following question: What are you most excited about seeing in The Dark Knight Rises?
Deadline to enter is 12:01 a.m. Pacific on July 19, 2012. One randomly selected winner will be notified by e-mail or Twitter. Winners must live in the United States.
Note: If you do not have an e-mail address or Twitter handle associated with your Disqus login, you must include contact information in your comment to be eligible. Any winner who does not respond to Wired's notification within 72 hours will forfeit the prize.
