Howls Moving Castle

Howls moving castle is based on a girl named Sophie who gets turned into an old woman by the wicked whitch of the weast and then stumbles across a moving castle owned by Howl and Sophie as her old woman self works for Howl as his Cleaning lady but she can manage to turn into a girl in the end and she finds out Howl has no heart and he can turn into a beast but thanks to Sophie she gives him back his heart and falls in love with him.

What I love best about Howl's moving castle is the romance inbetween Howl and Sophie and thats what makes the movie so heart warming and it makes you just want to watch it all over again and again.

While waiting for my computer to get repaired for the third time, I watched one of Hayao Miyazaki's films that is rather recent before Ponyo. The man who brought us the wonderful Spirited Away, as well as Kiki's Delivery Service and Princess Mononoke, Howl's Moving Castle is another great movie by the man himself.

The story revolves a young woman named Sophie who meets with a mysterious blonde man that turns out to be a wizard named Howl. They met when she is chased by the minions of the Wicked Witch of the Waste, who is out to retrieve the heart of Howl for herself. Realizing Sophie's affection for him, the Witch cursed her by turning her into an old lady and she cannot reveal who turned her into an old lady. While running away, she comes across a scarecrow, who helps her along the way to a mobile factory, but in the movie's case, a castle. There, she meets with Calcifer, a talking flame that helps power the mobile castle and Howl's kid assistant, Markl. From there, it goes on with the usual shtick that Hayao Miyazaki is known for, especially one where you have a very strong female lead that knows what to do and not the traditional cliche where the girl is acting like a seven year old.

It's a movie that is creative, but not as very imaginative as Spirited Away. That's not a bad thing, considering that it feels a little more understandable for mainstream audiences. However, people looking for more creativity in the creatures and having dream-like sequences that boggle the mind like Paprika might be a bit disappointed. Also, the romantic subplot of Sophie and Howl doesn't feel fleshed out, mostly because Howl is not in the movie as much as I would think. These things are just minor quibbles, though, with the movie really being an excellent movie.

The music by Joe Hisaishi is really wonderful as always. He really can write some wonderful, emotional music and provide dramatic impact to the film. Would this make me buy the soundtrack? Maybe, but to me, it's great music, but it's music that I might not remember for a long time. Just to remind everyone, though, this does not mean I don't like the soundtrack. I just don't find it memorable, yet this doesn't matter. It's great not matter what.

The characters in the movie are well-likable and funny at times. Sophie provides a strong performance and she has really good voice actresses behind her back. Howl is great, but some of the time, he's not in the movie at least 50% of the time. He is voiced by Christian Bale, who gives a good performance, but it's interesting to note that during a dream sequence where he's a monstrous bird, he gives that growly voice that sounds almost exactly like Batman in the Christopher Nolan's Batman films. I laugh every time that sequence appears. The Wicked Witch would be considered evil, but at the end, she becomes a good guy. It's the same theme that Hayao Miyazaki uses in his films, where the bad guys turn into good guys in the end. Everyone else is great.

The animation is, once again, a wonderful marvel of art. The character models look great and some of the CGI moments look great. The creatures and ships also look nice and creative. Overall, best animation yet.

Bottom line, the film itself oddly feels like Wizard of Oz (the Wicked Witch of the Waste instead of West, the scarecrow, etc.), yet it comes up with something different that makes it original and fresh. It's a great movie, but it doesn't hold up with Spirited Away. Nevertheless, you shouldn't miss out on another of Miyazaki's great movies.

Howl's Moving Castle is about a young hatter girl named Sophie who gets turned into an old woman by an evil witch. She ends up being the dreaded wizard Howl's cleaning lady and eventually befriends Howl's apprentice Markl, Howl's fire demon Calficer and of course Howl himself. There she tries to find a solution to her problem. Howl's Moving Castle is definitely one of Hayao Miyazaki's greatest films. The action and fantasy just keeps the watcher going and there is many twists and turns to keep you wondering. It also shows how a young girl saves the day from the help of Markl, Calcifer, a scarecrow, and a dog. It is because of the wonderful animation that I never get tired of watching this.

I was not expecting any of this. This movie was full of twists and turns that never made me bored. I laughed, sniffed, cried... Another fabulous piece from Hayao Miyazaki!!!!! This movie is great for the entire family. Enjoy it!!!