Hauru no ugoku shiro

What an amazing achievement! This is by far the best example I have ever seen of animated characterization. The expressions and the nuances and the emotion captured in this film are truly breathtaking. I love all of Miyazaki's workbut in Howl's Moving Castle he has managed to take it to a level that to me sets the standard.

It has all of the classic stunning Miyazaki panoramasrich settingsexciting and unusual machineryand brilliantly conceived creatures that are often humorous and fanciful. The characters are all very expertly crafted and developedbut what really enchanted me were their expressions and the subtle but powerful ways that he chose to elaborate on their connections and emotions. It is very difficult to describebut they come to life in such a powerful way as to seem entirely real and unique.

He achieves this within the medium - not by really imitating or parroting film or live actionbut by artfully exploiting the medium to enhance and capture the subtle interactions that make up relationships. He shows his audience what his characters are thinking and feeling by carefully chosen gestures and facial expressionsrather than relying always on dialogetc. I was completely swept away by this skillful use of animation - I have never anywhere else seen anything that begins to come close to it.

The story is fantastic - I haven't read the novelbut it had all of the elements I have come to enjoy in Miyazaki's work - there is the humourthe lighthearted momentsthe stronginsightfulloyaland honourable charactersthe lyrical drama and action sequences. The pace is perfect - it flows nicely and is always excitingsuspenseful - I got very caught up in the characters and their struggles and hopes. The themes were expertly handled with Miyazaki flair - and always richly meaningful and perceptive.

I can hardly wait to see what this brilliant artist creates next!

(first of all: sorry if my English is not the best out therebut it's not my native language)

I was lucky enough to see the world premiere (at Venice Film FestivalSeptember 52004).

Not only the art and animation is breathtaking (with almost no CGI)but the story is also above Miyazaki standards.

The characters are wonderfuleach one with his (or her) own personality. Among them the best is for sure Calciferthe Fire Demonwho is actually an almost all-powerful beingbut is often underestimated by the other characters ("If you don't obeyI'll pour water on you!").

The music is one of the best parts of the movie. Even if you don't notice itit is always therealways conveying the right feeling.

Bottom line: this is an excellent movie. If you liked other movies by Miyazaki (such as Mononoke HimeSpirited AwayLaputa Castle in the Sky...) you cannot miss it.

"Howl's Moving Castle" opened here in France on Jan. 12th (as "Le Château Ambulant," natch)and I saw it at an avant-première. As a raving fan of Miyazaki and of Diana Wynne JonesI feel lucky to be an American living in France -- I see there's no release date announced yet for the U.S. Sorryfolksand blame Disney!

I understand the feelings of viewers who have criticized the movie as trite. I find it's less imaginativein terms of character development and emotional profunditythan Miyazaki's best masterpieces. Howevereven a pedestrian Miyazaki movie is infinitely more richfrighteningimaginative and humane than any six Disney films put togetherand there's a lot to love in "Howl's Moving Castle."

I am glad I didn't reread Jones' book before seeing the film; even going on my six-year-old memory of the novelI can see the movie's a very loose adaptationand I think Jones fans would do best to try to take the movie on its own merits instead of looking for a faithful adaptation. That saidMiyazaki is surprisingly successfulat momentsin capturing the richness of the novel's characters: the peculiar co-habitation of charm and terror in Howl the sorcerer and his demon companion Calciferand the pragmatic strength of will that makes us love Sophiethe protagonistwho embodies both the fairy-tale archetypes of the young girl and the old woman at once.

Miyazaki's directorial trademarks are here in spades. Most of them lend strength and power to the film: his passion for open landscapeshis vision of the power and horror of warthe uncompromised way his movies work to empower childrenand especially girls. A few of them are just Miyazaki quirks that fans will recognize with amusement (walrus mustachescobbled European squaresand flying machines for everyone!) Richer and strangerthoughare the very successful integration of two things that Disney animation never even approaches: the way even a children's story can blur lines between an enemy and a friendand the cohabitation of the monstrous and the sublime. Enemyallymonsterbeloved: Miyazaki gives both visual and moral weight to these disturbing contradictionsand certain scenes in "Howl's Moving Castle" evoke a frightening sublimity I have never seen elsewhere than in "Princess Mononoke."

I think the film suffers from a slightly hurried paceespecially with respect to the protagonists' character developmentand the result is a loss of the subtlety that makes Jones' book such a gripping fairy tale. Her Howl is more ambivalentand her story is a more complex investigation of adolescent heartlessness and the growth of the heart. The endingwhich falls back too much on clichéd imagery and deus-ex-machinaalso could have been better handled. All that said"Howl's Moving Castle" contains lots of treasures and willI thinkstand up to repeated viewings. Miyazaki fans will be delightedand kids around the world should be given the chance to taste this latest richrespectful children's tale. (Be warnedthough: there are moments as terrifying as those in "Princess Mononoke," and younger kids will need their parents with them.)

On a final noteas few hardcore fans of Japanese anime will need to be remindedthe movie is doubtless best seen in its original version with subtitles. The Japanese voice acting is terrific -- although the voice of "young Sophie" doesn't strike me as anything specialthe actors playing the aged SophieHowland especially Calcifer are fantastic. Calcifer is a magnificent creation and should delight even the most conservative fan of the novel. I have serious doubts that the inevitable English-language dub will do the nuances justice.

In a time of war and falsity here it is a dancing poetry from Japan against all the cruelty and pain. The moving castle leads us to a magic place where life has a strong value and elderly people have an important role to play. Also in an apparent hostility or in a scarecrowHayao Miyazaki gives us the chance of finding a friend and not letting the dream go down. The perfect technique and the emotional stream are in complete harmony. If the jury of the Venice Film Festival had been more far-seeingit would have given a more prestigious prize to this masterpiece.

A very cinematically beautiful film with characters you just fall in love with. I won't liethe plot is very hard to follow. If you've read the bookyou can tell that miyazaki focused less on following the plotmore on making the film beautiful to watchand as a result we are left with a story that has huge chunks missing and frankly doesn't make a lot of sense in places. But I'm not madbecause it is veryvery beautiful to watch.