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Howl's Moving Castle (2004)
"Hauru no ugoku shiro" (original title)

8.1
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Ratings: 8.1/10 from 110,170 users   Metascore: 80/100
Reviews: 291 user | 190 critic | 40 from Metacritic.com

When an unconfident young woman is cursed with an old body by a spiteful witch, her only chance of breaking the spell lies with a self-indulgent yet insecure young wizard and his companions in his legged, walking home.

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(screenplay), (novel)
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Title: Howl's Moving Castle (2004)

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Top 250 #187 | Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 9 wins & 14 nominations. See more awards »

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Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Chieko Baishô ...
Sofî (voice)
Takuya Kimura ...
Hauru (voice)
Akihiro Miwa ...
Arechi no Majo (voice)
Tatsuya Gashûin ...
Karushifâ (voice)
Ryûnosuke Kamiki ...
Marukuru (voice)
Mitsunori Isaki ...
Koshô (voice)
Yô Oizumi ...
Kakashi no Kabu (voice)
Akio Ôtsuka ...
Kokuô (voice)
Daijiro Harada ...
Hin (voice)
Haruko Kato ...
Sariman (voice)
...
Grandma Sophie (voice)
...
Howl (voice)
...
Witch of the Waste (voice)
...
Madame Suliman (voice)
...
Young Sophie (voice)
Edit

Storyline

A love story between an 18-year-old girl named Sofî, cursed by a witch into an old woman's body, and a magician named Hauru. Under the curse, Sofî sets out to seek her fortune, which takes her to Hauru's strange moving castle. In the castle, Sophie meets Hauru's fire demon, named Karishifâ. Seeing that she is under a curse, the demon makes a deal with Sophie--if she breaks the contract he is under with Hauru, then Karushifâ will lift the curse that Sophie is under, and she will return to her 18-year-old shape. Written by Sophie Ball

Plot Summary | Plot Synopsis

Plot Keywords:

castle | witch | demon | spell | fire | See more »


Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for frightening images and brief mild language | See all certifications »

Parents Guide:

 »
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Details

Country:

Language:

Release Date:

17 June 2005 (USA)  »

Also Known As:

Howl's Moving Castle  »

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$29,133 (Chile) (19 May 2006)

Gross:

$82,187 (Chile) (2 June 2006)
 »

Company Credits

Show detailed on  »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

Sound Mix:

| |

Color:

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1
See  »
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Did You Know?

Trivia

Hayao Miyazaki:  [gorging on food]  Markl gorges his breakfast. See more »

Goofs

When Howl gives Sophie the ring, right before his line "Don't worry, I will follow behind in disguise," Howl's eyes are brown, not his normal blue. See more »

Quotes

Howl: I'm tired, make some hot water for my bath.
Calcifer: Not again!
See more »

Connections

Featured in JesuOtaku Anime Reviews: Howl's Moving Castle (2012) See more »

Soundtracks

"Sekai no Yakusoku"
Written by Youmi Kimura
Performed by Chieko Baisho
See more »

Frequently Asked Questions

See more (Spoiler Alert!) »

User Reviews

 
A wild and surreal trip into the mind of a master.
20 March 2005 | by (Los Angeles, CA) – See all my reviews

I think this is possibly Miyazaki's most intriguing movie. All of his other films are very linear and even though their highly varied worlds may be visually stunning and highly creative, I feel the dreamy world of Howls Moving Castle is by far the most captivating, bizarre, and imaginative of all the worlds Miyazaki has ever envisioned.

What I love about this movie is that it's highly emotional without a great deal of logic or plot or story to get in the way. In this way the film is simple, pure, and extremely beautiful. It is as if the characters go from one emotion to the next, in a world that is as random as one's own dreams. Some people have complained about the lack of plot or story or serious character development, but even though the characters are fairly static, their emotions and the physical changes they undergo as they go through these emotions brings out a higher truth that is seldom given such artistic and natural freedom.

I think this is a very smart movie in many subtle ways and it's one that I look forward to watching again on the big screen and then on DVD. Although it flirts from theme to theme to theme with a kind of animated attention deficit disorder, the landscapes and utter unabated surrealism left me stunned and never bored.

Also, from a quizzical character design perspective, Howl is certainly one of if not the most beautiful characters that Miyazaki has ever created. Howl is an interesting departure from Miyazaki's more classical wabi-sabi anime style that most of his heroes and heroines are drawn in as Howl is definitely a very contemporary bishonen.

If you're looking for quaint settings, dynamic characters and a very involving character or plot driven story, you're not going to necessarily find them here, but you will find an equally stunning and pleasing movie if you let yourself go and enjoy this passionate, heartfelt and surreal Miyazaki dream.


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