Howl's not-so-moving Castle

★★ 1/2 out of ★★★★ (👍)

Howl's Moving Castle (2004)

Runtime: 119 minutes

MPAA: Rated PG for frightening images and brief mild language.

Howl's Moving Castle should grip you from the start and transport you to another world, just like Spirited Away. The former objective works, with all the enchanting music and exceptional world-building, but the rest of the movie is never as riveting as the start. I can't say that I disliked it, but coming from Studio Ghibli, with all their other animations, this one feels quite disappointing.

An 18-year-old girl, Sophie Hatter is cursed by the Witch of the Waste, which transforms her into a nonagenarian. Afraid that people would see her, she decides to flee her town and into the hills, where she finds a moving castle. This castle belongs to a young wizard named Howl, who has been known to chase women for their looks. When Sophie enters the castle, a fire with eyes speaks. It is the demon Calcifer, whose fire runs the castle. Calcifer promises to make Sophie young again, under one condition: Sophie must free Calcifer from Howl, but he cannot tell her how. Howl welcomes Sophie into his castle and instantly recognizes Sophie's curse. She helps Howl confront the Witch of the Waste and his former mentor, Madame Suliman.

As the story goes on, the premise feels a little weak. Sophie was cursed by the Witch because the Witch was jealous of her closeness to Howl. However, Sophie and Howl were just acquaintances, and Howl just offered Sophie a ride - through floating in the sky - to somewhere else. Perhaps it tries to resolve this weak point later on by developing Sophie and Howl's relationship, but it can't compensate for the main cause. The plot is always creatively meandering, but seems to be at odds with itself sometimes. I brought a notebook in, just in case I forgot what I was watching, and as I reflect on it, there were a little too many things that seemed not to benefit to its narrative whatsoever. At one point, I wrote, "What is happening?"

Howl's Moving Castle offers great world-building at the start, but as it went on, it didn't feel as magical or compelling as Spirited Away. The magical images feel scarce, and there isn't many moments where you can appreciate its greatness. It only touches lightly on certain topics like witches, birds, war, and magic. It also explores certain themes like not judging people by their appearance but who they truly are, to a limited extent. Characters don't feel strong and memorable, yet you'll never feel like they're incomplete.  When it slows down, it surprisingly doesn't feel as moving as the title suggests.

Still, I am in awe with the wonderful scenery as Sophie looks out of the castle. I wished the scenes where a sense of serenity and calmness is evoked lasted longer. The peaceful grasslands with a plethora of flowers, or the calm flatlands with a stagnant body of water is probably every person's dream to be in. The concept of switching exit locations via the twist of the doorknob is a very intriguing idea too.

The music should help enchant this experience. It is a delightfully memorable and good sounding tune, but it repeats throughout the whole movie, making it feel irritating. In the end, Howl's Moving Castle may feel like a fantasy gimmick, but somehow you'll leave satisfied. However, it could have been more moving and touching, and not afraid to explore its themes and topics further.

Trailer: