loaded with enough imagination and sweet vibes for three movies!

Rating: 9/10 (30 December 2006)

I can't say for certain, especially after only seeing the English-language dub of the film in the theater (and seeing bits of it again on TV)- that Howl's Moving Castle is one of the very best of the great Hayao Miyazaki's feature films. But I didn't leave it feeling un-happy in the slightest, and if anything I remember most the feeling of uplift, which is what the best fairy tales try to accomplish. It follows the strand left by Spirited Away (though also trailing off from other Miyazaki films to be sure) where a female character is the protagonist thrust into strange circumstances, really around a curse.
Sophie (voiced by Emily Mortimer and the great Jean Simmons in the English dub) gets cursed by an evil witch, and then meets up at Howl's castle (Howl, by the way, is a slightly melancholy and quirky wizard, voiced in a fun way by Christian Bale), and sets about to make herself useful, however to also keep order in the guide of her now old-lady persona (and, more importantly, to free herself from the curse). She also has to contend with an overly cautious flame (Billy Crystal, odd choice for a talking fire, but it works better than I expected), and a scarecrow who sometimes just can't sit still.
Soon Sophie becomes the unwitting assistant to Howl, as she goes in partial disguise to help him be present instead of him before his former tutor, Madame Suliman. And, of course, in the meantime, a love story unfolds. Although I could argue that Howl's Moving Castle begins to stray a little from the completely satisfying world portrayed in Spirited Away or particularly in Princess Mononoke- and that the story is given way, frustrations and all, for the visual wonderment- it's still a delight from start to finish. While I wondered when I first saw it if the Japanese dialog would make a difference by much, seeing the American voices didn't detract much at all, and if anything the cast fulfills the story more than one could hope for.
And, of course, those visual inventions are never to be taken for granted in Miyazaki's world (more than likely attributable to the source from Diana Wynne Jones and leaning more to Western influence then the decidedly awesomely Eastern Mononoke). If anything individual moments, like when Howl almost melts away from not having certain powers, is really intriguing, or in just seeing the castle itself, with all of the little parts and spindles a marvel in and of itself (Ebert's not far off from saying that it's one of the great unique places of the movies, and for me almost resides on the other industrial side of the cutesy wonderment of Totoro).
I definitely need to watch it again, as Miyazaki's worlds usually do, but for now I do recommend it, even if you've never seen one of his films. Little girls too, I'd imagine, might get an extra kick out of the strong-willed female lead and the strong romantic interests in the storyline (and having a handsome leading man voiced by Bale doesn't hurt either).