Howl's Moving Castle

[chiqui]

Has anyone seen this yet? I know it opened in only a few American cities. Hows does it stack up to Spirited Away or Princess Mononoke? And which is better, the original or dubbed version?

[glitterbug]

It's going to be a real test for me because the book (by Diana Wynne Jones) is my all-time favourite. Hopefully it will live up to that for me. It's a fantastic story.

[sumire]

Uh-oh. Lower your expectations, glitterbug. I've only read the book once and don't remember it well, so the only differences that I could put my finger on were less Sophie's-family-backstory and no Wales (I was a little disappointed by the latter, but I can see how they might cut it in the interest of simplification). However, I've read other book-fans' comments that Miyazaki takes liberties with plot/characters far beyond that.

And that might not be so bad if he were just streamlining the story, but he isn't--this is the most confusing movie I've seen since Mullholland Drive (which at least has the excuse of half of it perhaps being a dream. So, frankly, I consider it inferior to most of Miyazaki's other films.

That's not to say I didn't like it, of course; Miyazaki on an off day is still better than a lot of other filmmakers at their best. Howl is teh hottness, which does a lot to redeem the film in my eyes, and the movie is full of all kinds of strange and wonderful scenes. I surprised myself by not hating the dub (I particularly enjoyed Billy Crystal's Calcifer), but then, this is is the first time since Robotech that I've heard a dub before I've heard the original Japanese.

[JeanBean]

I agree with sumire - it was wonderful visually, but the plot was incredibly confusing. I left dissatisfied.

And later I found out I could have seen it dubbed with Christian Bale! The dissapointment grows.

[Deleted]

I love, love, love the book. So I won't be seeing it. I just can't imagine the whole thing in animation. When I read the book, I see Howl, Sophie, Michael, etc. as real people. Sorry, animation does not usually work for me, unless it's a Disney type movie.

[glitterbug]

I'm with you on that, stargirl. I have it all cast in my head. The only problem is that Calcifer (amongst other characters) would have to be CGI which has started to look a bit over-used.

[Mutagen]

Was it just me or did Bale pull a Keanu with some of his lines? Especially the one about Sophie's hair looking "like the stars! Whoa!" And I liked Billy Crystal a lot, that was good casting.

I didn't mind HMC, but it was confusing and disorganized at times... I thought Spirited Away was much better.

[sumire]

IIRC, some reviewers cited Christian Bale as a weakish link in the cast. I didn't find him jarringly bad or anything, but he didn't really leave an impression. I can't even remember what kind of accent he was using.

I doubt it will, but I hope HMC will come to the dollar theater--I only got to see it once at the expensive place.

[MrsCatHead]

Hate to be the voice of dissent but I actually think this is my favorite Miyazaki film.

I love it when movies make you think...they don't hit you over the head with explanations about the curses. You have to figure them out. I love that. And the music...wow. Just wonderful. I liked this movie a lot. Even Billy Crystal didn't annoy me.

[chiqui]

I finally saw this. Very good, but not in the same league, storywise, as Pricess Monoke or Spirited Away. Then again, I have more of a desire to re-watch HMC than either of these, because the characters were so delightful. I think it's Miyazaki's homage to growing old with grace.