(May Contain Spoilers)
Now that Netflix has Studio Ghibli movies in its catalogue, I have been trying to get through some of them. I had been waiting patiently for Howl's Moving Castle and yes, it was well worth the wait! A moving tale of love, age and power.
Sophie (Emily Mortimer/Jean Simmons) is a hat maker who goes to visit her sister Lettie when she is stopped by two perverted guards, but a mysterious wizard comes to her rescue and escorts her. Later Sophie is visited by the Witch of the waste (Lauren Bacall) who puts a curse on Sophie for being associated with Howl (Christian Bale) who escorted her earlier that day. The curse turns Sophie into a ninety-year-old woman! On a quest to break the curse Sophie travels out of the city to the marsh lands where she meets a scarecrow (Crispin Freeman) which leads her to Howl's castle. Despite rumours that Howl eats the hearts of young girls, Sophie now cursed as an old woman, sees no harm in resting there for a while.
Sophie whilst in the castle, more like dusty living room, meets Calcifer (Billy Crystal) a fire demon who controls the castle, keeping it moving. He claims that he is cursed also and that they sho
uld help one another out to break it. Sophie then employs herself as a maid to Howl's castle tiding it away. The door to the castle is magic and changes when the dial is twisted, the black dial however, is only for Howl. When Howl goes through the black door, he transforms into a raven observing a war which has broken out amongst the neighbouring country. The king of Sophie's nation has summoned all of the witches and wizards to help in the war effort, but they brainwash them and get them stuck like birds forever.
Howl refuses to go to the king’s castle and instead insists Sophie, posing as his mother, go and tell them he is too much of a coward. Once there Sophie meets Madame Suliman (Blythe Danner) the king's advisor and begins to show her true colours when talking about Howl as she begins to break the curse but snaps back to her old cursed self. Meanwhile t
he Witch of the waist has had her powers drained by Suliman and Howl arrives to save the day. The Witch of the waist and Sophie make it back to Howl's castle safely, however with Howl keeping transforming into the bird-like creature it is making it harder for him to return to human form. It follows that, Howl hides the castle in Sophie's old home and Suliman's henchmen try to hunt them down, Sophie pulls Calcifer out of the fire pit and they try to escape, discovering that removing Calcifer resulted in the castle collapsing and that Howl is linked to Calcifer.
The Witch of the waste, who has been chasing Howl for his heart over many years also learnt that Calcifer is connected the Howl and therefore tries to eat the fire demon. In a panic Sophie throws water on them both resulting in the flame almost going out and killing Howl. Sophie, who is taken through a magic door learns Howl's fate and connection with Calcifer and manages to rescue them both! The scarecrow who has befriended Sophie reappears and as she kisses him lifts the curse to reveal he was the missing prince of the neighbouring kingdom and travels home to end the war. Sophie breaks her curse, although her hair stays white and they fly off into the sky.
This film is truly heart-warming, it's sweet story and action-packed magic make it a wonderfully family-friendly flick to watch! I think the story is complex enough that you are not sure how it is going to end; you route for Sophie and Howl as their romance blossoms. The curse began as a negative trait but became Sophie's strength as she pushed herself to her limits to find herself and love for Howl. I love Studio Ghibli animations and this film had great moments of humour and I love Sophie's character more so as the old woman! Wonderfully Wacky and Beautifully Bizarre!
Available now on Netflix.
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