Howl's Moving Castle 2004

I love the Studio Ghibli films. So far I think it is safe to say that Miyazaki is my favourite anime author, and I doubt anyone will ever take his place because I have grown so attached to the work of this man and his ideals reflected on the way he conceives animation, that I can't think of a deeper connection with one's style in any way.

That is the reason why "Howl's moving castle" was, at my first viewing, a serious disappointment. It was the first time a movie by Miyazaki didn't transport me to the world and imagery it showed. Almost two years later, however, and trying to bring another perspective about this film, I have watched it again, and while this has worked with some other works, it seems "Howl" is still my thorn in Miyazaki's filmography and will always be.

Of course the world introduced here is amazing. This is probably the most gorgeous and visually powerful film Miyazaki has ever done, just watch the scenery, the many traces of impressive imagery, and of course Joe Hisaishi with another solid performance. It's a pleasure for the senses, such a beautiful experience to look at and hear that surely makes it worth viewing.

But that is not an excuse for the many plot holes and sudden changes in character behaviour. That is, in the same way we have a really eye-candy experience given only by the -already known- technical skills of Miyazaki and his group of animators, the story is always lacking.

I would seriously like to be able to fill my review with interpretations and theories about this fascinating world, but quite honestly, didn't find any thread to follow or to keep my interest on. I just can't sit through what in my opinion are clear character and story inconsistencies sucking the emotion or the involvement in whatever the movie is trying to tell me. I won't go with specific scenes to avoid spoiling anyone, but will just say that I find it really disappointing to find that Sophie, the girl who is supposed to introduce me to the story and let me see the events from her eyes, looks so incoherent and variable in her interaction with many of the elements, say the Witch of the Waste or the reactions at some magic events happening around her.

The construction of the storyline is pretty poor, and that is fully shown at an ending scene that feels rushed and ridiculous, where there is not any hint to follow why some characters make some relevant decisions, and looks just plain lazy writing. Really, really lazy, and unsatisfactory. I don't know the original source, but I know Miyazaki far enough to be sure that the fact the novel may or may not be good shouldn't affect the quality of the movie, as in his adaptations he chooses to change stuff freely in order to adjust it to his own subjects and concerns.

It has been said that in this case the plotline is secondary, and it should be seen as a fascinating travel around a world full of magic, where the logic is not needed and if it appears it doesn't make any effect in the enjoyment of the movie. I couldn't disagree more with that statement. During my experience in Miyazaki's works, I have found often this recurrent idea about him, seeing his films as powerful visuals with messed up plots, and as far as I can tell I have never conceived them in that way. Even -and specially- at his least linear and most complex narrative, "Spirited away", every event tries to follow an internal logic, therefore the plot is here and is unavoidable. It also should happen with "Howl"; the fact that it's filled with fantastic and strange elements isn't a valid excuse to make the storytelling lackluster and inconsistent, and of course doesn't change the fact it is needed. More so when it's so clearly intended to be.

In conclusion, and while I can say this work is extremely powerful and memorable at the artistic aspects, I still see it as an unsuccessful attempt that becomes evident at the many plot holes and lack of competent character writing. As entertaining as it could be, it is my biggest disappointment with the otherwise excellent work of this director and the only one that has never fulfilled my expectations.

DISCLAIMER: I did not see this movie in its original language(Japanese), but in a dubbed version(Italian). I may have missed some nuances.

What attracted me to Howl's Moving Castle is without a doubt the steampunk-ish vibe of the castle itself. It looked very interesting from every picture I saw online and it seemed like it could be a great setting for a story.

But when it actually come down to the movie itself, it was a bit of a letdown. For starters, the castle itself doesn't feature nearly as much as I'd hoped, but I won't hold that against the movie. Let's go in order.

First, the good stuff.

The animation is top notch, as it's norm for a Studio Ghibli movie. Everything feels "alive", in a way. Not only that, but the drawings are absolutely beautiful. You could take a still from any point of the movie and it would probably look great hung on a wall.

I enjoy the score as well, but I don't have much else to say.

Now for the not-so-good aspects.

The story was full of holes. That's inexcusable. It barely made sense overall. If you've ever played with children, it's like when they start making up a story. At first it makes sense then, as it goes on longer, weird things start popping up with little relation to the story or an explanation. If that is acceptable from a kid, it absolutely isn't from a studio such as this.

The world building was another aspect were they missed the mark, in my opinion. It started out great, I was very intrigued about the mix of technology we see at the start (which had a steampunk/dieselpunk vibe) and the magic of Howl and of the Witch. But then it started becoming messier and messier. You couldn't tell what the rules where in that world and so the whole thing started to crumble for me.

In the end, Howl's Moving Castle is neither a bad or a good movie. It's a missed occasion for something much greater that could have been. I would only recommend it to fans of Studio Ghibli and even then with some reservations.

6/10

P.S.: Calcifer is the shining star of the whole thing

A relatively obscure Welsh fantasy novel provides the material for this, Miyazaki's follow-up to Spirited Away. It's a lovely marriage; two visions meant for one another. Howl's land of witches and wizards, steam-powered societies and shadowy machinations, calls back to several preceding chapters in the Studio Ghibli catalog, while still standing firm as its own original story.

The first hour is particularly good, setting the stage with the director’s usual doses of playful imagination and enchanting personality. We've got magic doorways, talking flames, witches' curses, fantastic flying machines, ticker-tape military parades and, of course, gigantic palaces propelled by mechanical chicken legs. Ghibli always profits from these long establishing shots, having mastered the art of breathing life into a world and watching it blossom, and the opening act is stuffed with so much of it that I couldn't have wiped the smile from my lips if I'd tried.

It falls into a bit of a rut after that, struggling to stretch an airy premise into something larger and more meaningful. There's depth to the story, but much of it remains unrevealed as the plot meanders and stumbles its way to a hazy finale. The animation is great, as expected, with colorful characters and alluring scenarios to spare, but Howl grows lost after that initial sheen wears off.

It's absolutely magnificent to look at, wonderfully animated, has a great soundtrack, and some adorable characters. Those parts really fulfilled my expectations given Miyazaki's reputation. The waltz-oriented music was also interesting, because the next movie that will be shown in this series of classics will be Oldboy, which did something similar.

I really liked it for the first 90 minutes, then it increasingly fell apart for me. All that dramatic buildup for such a quick succession of cheap resolutions? A friend of mine who I saw this in the theatre with (and who liked it a lot more than me) put it like this: it feels like they suddenly noticed they were running out of budget and had to quickly wrap everything up. It wouldn't really have bothered me if I had felt that the ending at least somewhat fit with the style and rhythm of the rest of the movie. This is a major reason for why I don't really like fantasy and sci-fi. Even the ones who seem to put some care into building a consistent world with its own set of rules, often end up completely ignoring it at some point and just go with whatever, which makes me feel cheated for having gotten invested.

Apart from Hauro's, I haven't seen a lot of Miyazaki's work yet (Totoro, but too long ago to remember if I liked it). I want to try a few more to see if his style just really isn't my thing in general.

I believe every movie consisting of good thought-after characters automatically becomes an ensemble even if they don't always
have high stakes on the main plot. It feels fulfilling in a way because you can notice the amount of time the makers have
spent on the characters. HMC is one of those. A lesser film would've solely focused on Sophie and Howl the whole time since they're the
only ones in every frame. But guess that's not what Miyazaki's known for. The side characters feel like spokes in a wheel which would
bring the castle down (pun intended) if even one of them doesn't come through. A great example would be the scene where the Witch of the Waste is holding Calcifer, showing every bit of reluctance in handing it over to Sophie. But when she does hand it over, it just seems the most natural thing that she would do at that point. I don't want to contaminate the scene by analysing it, but it just feels satisfying when the time that you spent in these characters pays off so well.

Sophie being cursed upon with old-age has to be one of the best uses of Chekov's gun that I have seen. It sets the ball rolling because her only determination in life is her work and now she does not have anything to strive for. Also, it does feel at times that she has
given up hope of going back to her normal life. One amazing scene being the one after she has met her mother, where Markl tells her not to leave and hugs her, and she doesn't hold back. That scene cements the fact that she has accepted the change of course in her life,
for better mostly because she has people who rely on her as much as she relies on them. The curse being the catalyst in all this because
the times when she does look young is when she is not self-analysing. Masterful storytelling.

I must confess I have only seen 3 of his movies. After Spirited Away and Totoro, I didn't want to watch any of his other movies because I
thought nothing can match up to them. And then I see this and ask myself: Tell me one reason why they can't co-exist. Here's to binging
the rest of the Miyazakis for the next few days.