One of Hayao Miyazaki's most structured and intriguing films

Rating: 10/10 (7 December 2016)

Howl's Moving Castle is a 2004 film directed by one of my favorite film- makers, Hayao Miyazaki. The movie is based on a series of books by Diana Wynee Jones. The use of romance and sacrifices made for each other to help rise each other to the top while working together makes the film very delightful and enjoyable to experience. There are many friendship and teamwork lessons within the film which makes it great for audiences of any age. The magic and fairy tale like theme makes it spectacular watching the use of good and evil contradict each other but you eventually realize that each character has a justified reason to their actions which ends in delight for even the not so good characters in the film. Everyone deserves a happily ever after and Hayao Miyazaki shows that well in this piece.
Insecurity is a large influence in this film. Sophie, a hat maker who works in her father's shop, is practically saved by Howl and literally swept off her feet from perverted officers while walking to her sister's bakery and that is when her life is changed forever. Howl is a wizard with a moving castle that he uses to flee from the dangers of his magic powers. Sophie is eventually cursed by the Witch of the Waste since she was seen with Howl and turned into an old woman. The catch to the curse is, she is not allowed to talk about what has happened to her. This reaches out to audiences and allows them to relate to Sophie's insecurities with how accepting she is to being an old woman. She eventually sets off on her own adventure to figure out how to reverse the curse which leads up to magical experiences and teamwork with involvements of romance and friendship.
Despite Sophie's low self confidence, she put on a brave face and made it to an empty land where she befriends a scarecrow which leads her to Howl's castle that she uses for shelter for the majority of her adventure. The fire that keeps the castle moving is a demon called Calcifer who is under a curse which keeps him stuck as being nothing but a fire. Also living in the castle is a young wizard in training called Markl. Sophie, Howl, Calcifer and Markl all support and make sure each other are safe and secure. Howl was a coward but with the help of his friends he becomes one of the strongest happiest wizards in the land.
Disaster strikes when Howl is called to war. The spinning dial at the front door is a portal to different parts of the land. Sophie poses as Howl's mother and is accompanied by the Witch of the Waste and a dog to Madame Sullivan's castle, who is the ruler. The Witch of the Waste is stripped of her powers while Sophie explains how Howl is not able to fight his battles. Once Madame Sullivan angers Sophie, Howl must come to the rescue to escape back to home when they are joined by the Witch of the Waste and the ruler's dog. This part demonstrates strength, Sophie originally went to the castle to explain Howl's failures but then allows Howl to gain courage and save the love of his life. From this point forward, Howl is portrayed as a hero and a fighter. He goes through weakening battles during the war to protect his true love, Sophie, and to help defend his land. Miyazaki demonstrates character development in many ways starting with Howl's bravery. In addition, the deeper Howl and Sophie fall in love the more Sophie is able to embrace herself and reverse the curse on her own. You notice throughout the film sometimes Sophie looks younger than other times and those are the moments when she is feeling confident. The more that goes wrong, the more Sophie is able to allow her strengths to shine and she becomes a more secure person. As you can see, I am amazed by the story line leading up to Sophie's confidence rising. The Witch of the Waste follows this pattern when she discovers Calcifer holds Howl's heart within his flames. She grabs the heart which results in disaster for everybody, but when the situation becomes more content, Sophie persuades her to give the heart back and save Howl's life. The use of examples of growing from your troublesome experiences makes it an eye opener to audiences to realize that when life gets rough, you can always find a way to prevail.
The life lessons in this film are outstandingly portrayed by the producer. He never fails to provide a strong female role in his films which implies self confidence and examples of leadership for girls everywhere. Sophie may seem stronger than Howl in the beginning of the movie, but by the end they balance out each other's strengths and weaknesses to make a great team. Friendship is a major component in this movie. Calcifer is set free of his curse but returns to his friends as the free spirit he is. In addition, the scarecrow saved the crew from falling like an avalanche from the top of a mountain once Calcifer's spirit is freed, but once Sophie kisses him on the cheek, his curse is reversed showing that she is his true love. He is very accepting to the fact that Sophie loves someone else and just wants to do the best for his people by attempting to put an end to the war. The ending is well for everyone, even Madame Sullivan! When the dog somehow checks in with her through a crystal ball, she decides to put an end to the war due to seeing Howl using the potential of his powers and finding his true love. In Miyazaki's movies, he uses his knowledge of every soul developing so they deserve their happily ever after no matter how cold they may seem.