Howl’s Moving Castle

From the guy who brought us Spirited Away and Kiki’s Delivery Service, and based on a novel by Diana Wynne Jones, this anime is so full of surprises I may have to watch it again just to remember all of it.

Animation:
Smooth, inventive, realistic. Howl’s castle is a walking junkyard, and a marvel to behold. Some flying sequences are even reminiscent of Disney’s Fantasia. But where this movie excels (trumping Disney, in my humble opinion) is with its portrayal of the main character. She is a young woman inflicted with a curse that makes her very, very old. Her rheumatism is animated with such accuracy it makes me cringe, feeling her pain.

Story:
Very different, with lots of variety. A woman gets cursed. So she must reverse the curse and then put to an end the powerful reign of the witch who cursed her, right? If you’re expecting this sort of revenge narrative, you might be disappointed.

However, if you like detective stories, in which one villain you thought was evil is not as bad as another villain you discover later on, Howl’s Moving Castle might be for you. Yet this can’t really be classified as a detective story. Sure, there’s a bit of mystery. But also self-discovery. And some inventive uses of magic along the way. You also get hints of a strange, inter-dimensional war going on. And there are even hints of a love story, which doesn’t kick into high gear (literally) until the final climatic scene.