Howl's Moving Castle

This film is based off a novel that was written by Diana Wynne Jones in 1986, by the same name. The Director of Digimon’s first two movies and the first season was Mamoru Hosoda and was originally supposed to direct Howl‘s Moving Castle, but up and left leaving it to then-retired Hayao Miyazaki. It was first released in Japan in September 2004 premiering at the Venice Film Festival. It then went to theaters in November the same year in Japan. It grossed over 230,000,000 making it one of the most successful Japanese films in history worldwide. Paxar’s Peter Docter dubbed Howl’s Moving Castle into English. Walt Disney Pictures is the one that distributed in the USA. In June 2005 it had a limited release in the US and Canada, but was released nationwide in Australia in September and in the UK the following year.

The main character an eighteen-year-old girl named Sophie is finishing work on a hat. Her mother, she and co-workers run the hat shop. Her late father started it. Sophie thinks she is a plain looking girl, but she in reality has a very beautiful soul, works too much, and has no fun. She does not think herself pretty or special in anyway. One of the women co-workers asks if she wants to go out, Sophie tells her no that she needs to finish her work. After the woman and the girls leave, she gets up to leave too. Sophie locks up behind her and goes to find where the bakery in which her sister works. She is busy looking at a directions to the bakery, when she almost runs in to some soldiers. They ask if a little mouse is lost, she tells them no, to let her pass, but they do not leave her alone. Out of nowhere Howl, a very handsome wizard, comes up behind her, “Oh there you are sweetie” she looks startled. The soldiers tell him to buzz off and leave them alone. He says no that they were leaving, he points his finger and they leave.

He tells her that he will be her escort to where she is going. They start to walk and he tells her that do not be alarmed that they were being followed. After a couple of steps she looks back finally, she sees the black blob men that are after him. They are cornered and the handsome wizard tells her to hold on. They shoot up and in to the sky, then they start walking in the air. “You’re a natural,” he tells her. He takes her to the bakery and sets her down on the balcony. She stands there stunned. Sophie’s sister is told that she has just floated onto the balcony with Howl. She comes running to greet her and to see if she is ok. The rumor of Howl taking pretty girls and eating their hearts is why she is worried she is hurt. (This is not true.) They go down stairs and to talk in the storage room. The two women are not there long before one of the co-workers tells her sister that something is done. Sophie’s sister tells her to be careful when she leaves, she says that she will be fine and goes.

She arrives back at the hat shop and locks the door behind her. Sophie then goes to the counter and turns on the light. The door chime goes off behind her know that someone just walked in. She turns and says sorry we are closed. It is none other than the Witch of The Waste, but Sophie does not know this yet. The Witch tells her I do not know what Howl sees in you, you are not pretty. Sophie goes past her and says here is the door miss please leave. The Witch says that is no way to talk to The Witch of the Waste. She gasps and the witch flies threw her and says I am cursing you to old age and you cannot tell anyone about it. She leaves Sophie alone to discover her hag of a look in the mirror.

The movie goes on with a couple more characters like the scarecrow that she names Turnip Head. Cacifer the demon that made a deal with Howl and is now linked to him to where if ether of them dies so does the other. They are also Markl the apprentice that keeps an eye on the magic four-way door. An all-star cast voices the characters. Billy Crystal as Cacifer, Jean Simmons as Old Sophie, Christian Bale as Howl, Lauren Bacall as The Witch of the Waste. Also Emily Mortimer as Young Sophie, and Josh Hutcherson as Markl. This movie is necessary buy and watch repeatedly.

Buy Howl's Moving Castle on DVD at the Cartoon Store (also available in limited edition sleeve design)