Howl's Moving Castle - A Flawed Delight

Rating: 8/10 (19 June 2005)

Supreme Japanese animation lord Hayao Miyazaki's latest film release, Howl's Moving Castle, is both a solid success and a slight failure. Based upon the novel of the same name by Diana Wynne Jones, Howl's Moving Castle lacks nothing in terms of imagination or strong characters. Despite being adapted from the novel, the film still reeks of the delicious Miyazaki flavor, and fans of his previous work will be right at home. In fact, Howl's Moving Castle has such a Miyazaki-esquire plot that one would never infer that it's based upon a novel.
One would think that being based off of a book would ensure a detailed and nearly perfect plot. The plot, however, is the movie's greatest shortcoming. While it starts off as intriguing, it eventually deteriorates into a somewhat sloppy, vague mess. The film's most significant and apparent plot devices seem rushed and lack necessary background info, forcing the audience to fill in many dark areas based upon their own inferences. This wouldn't be too much of an issue if the movie didn't have the habit of merely alluding to the slightest of implications.
For instance, the entire cataclysm for Howl's plot is the Wicked Witch of the Waste putting a curse on main character Sophie which turns her into an old woman. The witch walks into the girl's shop after hours for no apparent reason (though in the book it's made clear that the witch is in actuality dissatisfied with a purchased garment; this is never brought up in the movie), bullies poor, innocent Sophie, and then sets her curse without a second thought. It isn't until much later in the movie that the audience can even begin to piece together a strong reason why the witch would do such a thing to Sophie (it seems to me that it has to do with a strong jealousy in regards to the character known as Howl), and even then the audience doesn't gain much evidence from the movie to support such interpretations. In fact, the entire plot line suffers from similar faulty foundation: the entire war situation is barely developed, the declared love between the two main characters seems to come out of nowhere (sure, the film has its charming subtleties in this regard  don't think I missed them  but it seems a bit unrealistic that the two characters would be so settled on their feelings), and the main villain is utterly wasted.
What the movie lacks in terms of plot is more than made up for in almost every other aspect. The animation is perhaps the finest I have ever experienced: I was on the verge of goose bumps the first time I saw Howl's castle walk across the fog-shrouded landscape. Just as impressive are the sprawling environments that the characters find themselves in. The interior of Howl's castle is beautiful and unique, particularly Howl's bedroom. Howl's "secret garden" is awe-inspiring, and all of the various towns have a very real look to them. The numerous aircraft are also lovingly detailed and are certainly something that Hayao Miyazaki is to take pride in considering his love for planes and flight sequences.
Howl's Moving Castle also has some of the most fantastic characters ever conceived in an animated movie. Every single one of them, no matter how major or understated, is absolutely bursting with personality. Much of this is attributable to Miyazaki's distinctive art style, but the writing and situations are perhaps most important in developing the characters. Take special note when main characters interact with secondary ones: oftentimes, the underplayed characters are perhaps the most interesting, particularly Sophie's mother: she's even more detestable than the main villain, even despite her subtle deviance.
Also worth noting are the movie's numerous and potent messages. While Miyazaki's pro-nature messages are growing to be a bit pedestrian (and are a lot less pungent here than in Princess Mononoke or Nausicaa of the Valley of the Winds), his thoughts on greed and love are quite different than anything he's preached before. Indeed, the sheer beauty of this movie's messages is that they're so effective because of the wonderful characterization and the glorious art. At one pivotal point in the movie, the Wicked Witch of the Waste is transformed into a most miserable state, which is perhaps the most powerful tool in conveying the sorrowful yet human anti-greed message.
All in all, despite a somewhat frail plot, Howl's Moving Castle is a resounding success. It's not creative enough to top Miyazaki's Spirited Away, nor is it deep or serious enough to be considered on par with his masterpiece Princess Mononoke, but it is a worthy entry to his overall legacy. Fans young and old alike should experience this film, and they should definitely bring a friend. You'll laugh, and with a bit of luck, maybe shed a tear or two. Maybe. If you haven't seen any of Miyazaki's past work, this is perhaps not the best place to start as it certainly isn't his best work. If you're hungry for more, however, make no mistake: this is a movie worth seeing.
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