 |  Ladies and gentlemen, this week sees the publication of issue 300 of Empire Magazine , the centrepiece of our 25th birthday celebrations. Rather than making this some nostalgic self-promoting clips episode, we asked the world's biggest and best directors to give you, the readers, a special gift. The likes of David Fincher, Steven Spielberg, Joss Whedon, Michael Mann, Hayao Miyazaki, Sofia Coppola and Edgar Wright have opened their hearts and their vaults to offer up exclusive, never-before-seen photos, backstage info and heartfelt wisdom. There's artwork, personal essays, director-on-director interviews and much more in an issue led by the best filmmakers around. We also have the first look at Avengers: Age Of Ultron, Jurassic World and World Of Warcraft, as well as all the usual goodness. If you love film, accept no substitute: this is essential reading. Helen O'Hara
Deputy Online Editor, Empire
 
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  New Trailer For Sin City: A Dame To Kill For
We saw the first trailer for Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez' hard-boiled noir sequel Sin City: A Dame To Kill For early last month. Here comes the new, shorter promo, which features a batch of new footage and more slinky hyper-sexuality and violence. More: New Trailer For [.Rec] 4: Genesis Online This is the end... Trust Me Trailer Arrives Clark Gregg is an agent... but not Coulson. First Trailer For As Above, So Below Paris! City of lights out... See The Opening Of How To Train Your Dragon 2 DreamWorks Animation puts its WonderCon clip online. First Clip From Star Wars Rebels TIE Fighter take down. Teaser For Orange Is The New Black Season 2 Piper goes for the throat. First Jersey Boys Trailer Clint Eastwood's musical adaptation is heating up. Maleficent Featurette Explores The Film Jolie & co explain the idea.
  The book of Grace Of Monaco, which means we can bone up on our Monégasque monarchs before the film opens Cannes next month.
 It won't be the first or the last time that someone has chased me down the street with a digeridoo.  Chris Lupton is sanguine in the face of Dan's threats.
20 Not So Super '-Men' That Won't Star In A Film Any Time Soon
There was a time when Iron Man was considered too low on the superhero ladder to warrant his own film, but after years in development limbo Marvel cracked the idea and kicked off one of the most successful superhero franchises in history. But what about the also-ran "-Men"; the weird, high-concept characters that seem doomed to stay on the page? When will their time come? Meet a few of our favourites... | |
|  | | The Empire Podcast #107
You might know him as Bilbo Baggins, or John Watson, or Tim From The Office (his character's full name), but this week Martin Freeman is actually Lester Nygaard from the new TV version of Fargo. He talks to us about everything from the joys of swearing to Billy Bob Thorton's pathological fear of antiquities. Elsewhere, David Cross drops by to talk about the new film he wrote and directed, Hits, and we resist the temptation to grill him about Arrested Development, Mr. Show and The Increasingly Poor Decisions Of Todd Margaret. No-one does a Mrs. Featherbottom impersonation - promise. |
|  | | The 10 Most Exciting Movies At Cannes 2014
Between May 14 and 25, the Cannes International Film Festival will play host to some of the most gifted and glamorous faces in movieland. Empire, whose face likes to think it combines both qualities into one geeky visage, will be there covering every gala, screening and soirée worth physically breaking into. But which movies will hoover up the most attention in the Midi? Our very own Damo-on-the-spot, Damon Wise, has picked his ten to keep an eye out for. |
|  | | Cameron Diaz, Leslie Mann And Kate Upton Talk The Other Woman
In this interview, you will see (and hear) Cameron Diaz say the words "His balls hit me in my face." Other choice excerpts include "Was it your idea to do the burp?" (Leslie Mann) and "I was trying to hinge her hips and kick her knees" (Diaz, again). "Anarchic" is not the word - "mayhem" might do it justice. In summary: make sure you click play immediately, if only to see Cameron Diaz contorting her legs into a position you never thought possible with three people on a sofa. |
|  | | Empire Meets John Powell
John Powell's introduction to Hollywood was assisting Hans Zimmer on an un-released drama documentary directed by one Terrence Malick. "He didn't know who the hell I was but he treated me like an artist straight off," remembers Powell. "He is profound. He will say something that you will have to go and think about for 48 hours." Since his big feature break with Face/Off, the British-born Powell has risen to become one of most sought after composers, building relationships with directors like Paul Greengrass and Doug Liman and straddling the worlds of live action and animation - next up is How To Train Your Dragon 2. Here he talks through his key scores... |
|  | | Fired! Losing Your Job In The Movies
Getting fired is not fun. Unless, of course, it's in the movies, which often go out of their way to make people losing their entire livelihoods seem entertaining. So entirely apropos of nothing, honest, we've assembled some of the greatest movie sackings (at least among those available on YouTube, hence the lack of, say, Jerry Maguire) - guaranteed to cheer you up whether you've been let go, downsized, or are simply a football manager who's failed to deliver... |
|  | | Classic Scene: Bill Durham
"Well, what do you believe in then?" Baseball catcher Crash Davis (Costner) makes his classic speech to sophisticated team groupie Annie (Sarandon)... |
|  | | The Best Barry Norman Anecdotes From His Empire Podcast Interview
Though it's been 16 years since he last hosted the BBC's Film programme, Barry Norman has enjoyed a lasting influence on cinema criticism, his career casting a long shadow on both his presenting successors and movie lovers everywhere. Popping into the Empire Podcast recording booth recently for a lengthy special in honour of his latest book, See You In The Morning, he had so much to say on all manner of topics that we've broken out some particularly enjoyable anecdotes for you to read at your leisure. And why not? |
|  | | Win A Film Download, Takeaway Every Sunday With Fox Searchlight!
Throughout 2014, Empire will be giving readers the chance to win a Digital HD copy of a Fox Searchlight film, plus a £25 hungryhouse.co.uk voucher to order their favourite takeaway online. Just head to Twitter each Sunday (make sure you're following @empiremagazine ) and answer the quiz question posed, tagging your tweet with #SearchlightSundays. In addition, there will be a chance to win flights to Utah and hotel accommodation during the 2015 Sundance Film Festival! Click here for full details |
|  | | John Woo's Musical Odyssey
Empire's none-more-300th issue gets several louder with John Woo, the Baron of the Bullet Ballet, sharing his favourite ten tunes. We asked the director of Hard Boiled, Mission: Impossible II, Better Tomorrow to tell us what it really sounds like when doves cry. The answer, it turns out, is Cliff Richard's 'The Young Ones'. Yes, prepare yourself for Ear/Off. |
|  | | Gareth Edwards' Godzilla Spotify Playlist
The Gojiro-sized 300th edition of Empire is fittingly soundtracked by the man currently hard at work on a city-crunching Godzilla of his own. Presumably using his lunchbreak for the purpose, Gareth Edwards compiled a playlist of the classical and film music cues that inspired him before putting camera to monster. Enjoy... |
|  | | Sundance London: An Introduction To The 2014 Edition
Some 15 years ago, we at Empire made a terrible mistake by sharing our discovery of a wonderful Christmassy village in Utah that every January showed great independent films by terrific emerging filmmakers to enthusiastic audiences. It had been an open secret for a while before then, but sometime in the late 2000s the Sundance Film Festival simply exploded, making it not just the first appointment festival on the calendar but an event that now resounds throughout the rest of the year. Never mind its rep as the festival that discovered Quentin Tarantino, Steven Soderbergh and Kevin Smith, Sundance continues to be relevant by championing films that in recent years have launched X-Person Jennifer Lawrence, (re)discovered the elusive Sixto Rodriguez and made Benh Zeitlin a surprise Best Picture nominee for his debut Beasts Of The Southern Wild. |
|  | | Classic Pint Of Milk Interview: Tim Robbins
He got up to some to some masterful Hula-Hoopery for the Coen Brothers, escaped prison in The Shawshank Redemption and wheeled and dealed in The Player. He's also a successful director, counting Dead Man Walking and Bob Roberts among his efforts. But does Tim Robbins know the price of a pint of the white stuff? |
|  | | Empire Presents the New York Film Academy
New York Film Academy has built a reputation as one of the premier film schools in the world. With its innovative hands-on approach to teaching, students find themselves completely immersed in their course of study, surrounded by award-winning faculty and working with state-of-the-art equipment and facilities. Learn Filmmaking, Acting for Film, Photography, Musical Theatre, Game Design, Animation and more. |
 
David Cross thinks he could be friends with our Ali and our Chris. 
Michael Giacchino came up with the core melody of Married Life, from Up, in the shower one morning. 
The man who invented widescreen also patented the first water skis. 
There are blue volcanos. 
Marc Webb does a pretty good English accent.
 |  | |  | |  | |  |  | | Squid can fly now? | | Work out like Buffy! | | The Fifth Element - 8-bit. | | Abandoned film sets. |
If you have any timewasters to share, then e-mail them in to us. |
 
Tracks 
However familiar the terrain, this is a vivid, heartbreaking and captivating character piece and travel movie in one, guided by an outstanding Wasikowska. Also Out
 
The Secret Life Of Walter Mitty
As a director, this feels like Stiller's moment. Mitty is a film that bravely rejects cynicism. In many ways, it's the new Forrest Gump. Go with it and it is, in all senses, wonderful. Also Out
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