just plain magical

Rating: 8/10 (19 July 2005)

After Spirited Away I was very anxious to see Miyazaki's new movie, and I was not disappointed. Once again he has made a magical, lyrical work of art and entertainment. This movie makes me think of the Wizard of Oz, not for the story but just for the way in which everything is touched by magic. Everything is created by magic or cursed by magic so you just have to call the film magical. Characters are well drawn and the movie is very funny but with a thoughtful, melancholy quality that comes out now and again.
Unfortunately, Miyazaki was little sloppy in terms of story. At the end of the movie, neither I nor my girlfriend understood what it was that happened to howl or what Madam Suliman's agenda was. The rumors about Howl are mentioned then dropped and there's a plot development at the end for which no groundwork has been laid at all.
But Howl's Moving Castle is ultimately so engaging and directed with such assuredness that one can forgive its flaws.