Howl's Moving Castle

Aka: Hauru no Ugoku Shiro

Director: Miyazaki Hayao

Release date: 2004

Language: English

Genre: Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Fantasy, Mystery, Romance

Starring:

Jean Simmons as Grandma Sophie
Christian Bale as Howl
Lauren Bacall as Witch of the Waste
Billy Crystal as Calcifer
Emily Mortimer as Young Sophie
Josh Hutcherson as Mark
Blythe Danner as Miss Suliman
Jena Malone as Lettie
Mari Devon as Honey

Synopsis:
Young Sophie Hatter is cursed by the Witch of the Waste, and turns into an old hag. Ashamed of how she looks, she flees into the hills where a moving castle roams the hills. It is said to belong to the young and handsome wizard Howl, who has a bad reputation. Within the castle, Sophie befriends the fire demon Calcifer, who promises to help her become young again. One catch: she must help Calcifer to be free of Howl, and Calcifer cannot tell her how.

However, Sophie agrees to stay and try to find out about the contract through other ways. Still, Howl can see that Sophie is under a spell like Calcifer can, and he falls in love with her for who she is and not for what she looks like. Sophie manages to bring life to the moving castle, and she helps Howl to face his former tutor, Madam Suliman.
(Credit: Imdb)

Review:

I really love to watch this kind of movies. It reminds me when I was younger and I still believed in fairy tales... Besides Hayao Miyazaki amazes me all the time and it's a brilliant story teller. His movies are always five stars.

Sorry to everyone but I couldn't find the original version so I posted the dubbed one. If anyone has the original and wants to share it with us, feel free to do so.

Trailer:


Related Links:

Trailer: Alextitus

DDL:

01 - 02 - 03 - 04 - 05 - 06 - 07 - 08

Online Streaming: Veoh

Curiosities:

Awards:

Hollywood Film Festival:

Animation of the Year

Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards:

Best Music Score: Joe Hisaishi and Youmi Kimura

Mainichi Film Concours:

Readers' Choice Award: Best Film

New York Film Critics Circle Awards:

Best Animated Film

San Diego Film Critics Society Awards:

Best Animated Film

Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America:

Nebula Award - Best Script: Hayao Miyazaki, Cindy Davis Hewitt and Donald H. Hewitt

Sitges - Catalonian International Film Festival:

Audience Award - Best Feature Film

Venice Film Festival:

Golden Osella


Award Nominations:

Academy Awards, USA:

Oscar - Best Animated Feature Film of the Year

Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, USA:

Saturn Award: Best Animated Film

Annie Awards:

Best Animated Feature
Best Directing in an Animated Feature Production: Hayao Miyazaki
Best Writing in an Animated Feature Production: Hayao Miyazaki, Donald H. Hewitt and Cindy Davis Hewitt

Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards:

Best Animated Feature

Hong Kong Film Awards:

Best Asian Film

Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists:

Silver Ribbon: Best Director - Foreign Film: Hayao Miyazaki

Motion Picture Sound Editors, USA:

Best Sound Editing in Feature Film - Animated

Online Film Critics Society Awards:

Best Animated Feature

Satellite Awards:

Outstanding Motion Picture, Animated or Mixed Media

Sitges - Catalonian International Film Festival:

Best Film

Venice Film Festival:

Golden Lion: Hayao Miyazaki

Young Artist Awards:

Best Family Feature Film - Animation


Trivia:

The character Pazu, from Miyazaki's Castle in the Sky, can be seen running in front of the Wizard Jenkins' door.

Loosely based on the novel by Diana Wynne Jones.

Although the film was not released in the United Kingdom until 23 September 2005, director Hayao Miyazaki personally traveled to England in the summer of 2004 to give a private showing of the film to Diana Wynne Jones.

Anime | Chinese | Japanese | Korean | Manga | Taiwanese | Thai | Others