wonderfully immersive

Rating: 8/10 (7 April 2020)

I wondered with which scene the movie would have totally sold me, guess that was the very first.
Magic and sorcery is common in this world, but everything surrounding Howl and his castle is a mistery. The way the movie makes us learn and adapt to this world on excactly the same pase as Sophie makes this movie incredibly immersive. When the movie comes to an end, it almost feels like you've actually been a part of this world for weeks. The story gets darker and darker the more you watch it, but ends with just enough wonder to leave you statisfied, that tiny bit of light in the form of Howl's heart. My only issue is that some parts of the magic and curses are not really explained well, but that isn't really that neccesary to the story, and can therefore easily be overlooked. If you are even slightly interested in anything Studio Ghibly has to offer, this will be a movie for you.