Howl's Moving Castle [dubbed]

Based on the novel by Diana Wynne Jones, Howl’s Moving Castle is one of the most financially successful films in Japanese history. Famed Japanese director Hayao Miyazaki came out of retirement to direct it when the original director abruptly left the project, and it is considered by many to be one of his best. Howl’s Moving Castle is beautifully drawn and charmingly depicted, as was its hugely popular predecessor Spirited Away.

The film follows eighteen-year-old Sophie (Mortimer), an unassuming hat-maker afflicted with a curse. She meets the mysterious wizard Howl (Bale), who takes a liking to her, but is later confronted by the Witch of the Waste (Bacall) who turns her into an old woman! Unable to tell anyone about the curse, Sophie runs away and stumbles across Howl’s mysterious moving castle, mechanically powered on steel legs. She takes on the role of Howl’s cleaning lady so that she can break both the curse and a pact made between Howl and Calcifer (Crystal), a fire demon trapped in the castle.

Howl’s Moving Castle features a very unusual yet loveable cast of characters including Turnip Head and Heen, an animated scarecrow and an asthmatic dog respectively. The relationship between Howl and Sophie, who is in love with him, unfolds throughout the film and becomes central to the main plot concerning the war over the missing crown prince Justin.

Beautifully animated and wonderfully told, Howl’s Moving Castle is a charming and imaginative film true to the style of Studio Ghibli. This film is a must-see for anyone who loves Japanese cinema, especially the Miyazaki fans!

Sophie Carroll

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In a land of wizards, witches and war lives a girl called Sophie. She lives in a small industrial town and works as a hat maker. On her way to see some designs she meets Howl, a wizard who lives in a famous walking castle that roams the land. He rescues her from a tight situation but he himself is in danger as dark shapes are close behind him. The two escape to safety and Howl leaves Sophie who watches him fly away in awe. That evening the Witch of The Wasteland visits Sophie and lays a curse upon her. This curse cannot be lifted by any human being; it is the curse of old age. The next morning Sophie hobbles out of the town in search of Howl and this is where things really get interesting.

Studio Ghibli is probably the most famous anime production house, responsible for such classics as My Neighbour Totoro, Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke. This is their fifteenth film and demonstrates a stupendous talent tailored by decades of experience. In no other films do you see so much imagination; anime can show you anything and each moment is rich with ideas and novel ways of seeing the world. This film contains shadows with shadows, a man who drips into goo when he is feeling low, a woman whose age changes depending on how she is feeling and many other crazy things. The film is beautifully animated and the musical score is top notch. The story is intriguingly bizarre; essentially about love and confidence. Sophie feels herself ugly and so when she turns into an old woman she enjoys the way people see her; the respect they instantly give her because of her apparent years. All the characters have their own foibles; Howl is not the flash wizard he first appears and even the evil witch carries a burden. All this human plot is quite hard to spot amongst all the weird stuff going on; this is probably the oddest Ghibli in recent years. However, it does have the cutest dog ever drawn, which alone is worth the entry fee.

Nick Grills