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.

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Millenium Actress

Aka: Sennen Joyû / 千年女優,

Director: Kon Satoshi

Release date: 2001

Language: Japanese

Subtitle: English (Hard-subbed)

Genre: Drama, Fantasy, Romance

Starring:

Miyoko Shōji as Chiyoko Fujiwara (old)
Mami Koyama as Chiyoko Fujiwara (adult)
Fumiko Orikasa as Chiyoko Fujiwara (young)
Shōzō Iizuka as Genya Tachibana
Masaya Onosaka as Kyōji Ida the Cameraman

Synopsis:

A movie studio is being torn down. TV interviewer Genya Tachibana has tracked down its most famous star, Chiyoko Fujiwara, who has been a recluse since she left acting some 30 years ago. Tachibana delivers a key to her, and it causes her to reflect on her career; as she's telling the story, Tachibana and his long-suffering cameraman are drawn in.

The key was given to her as a teenager by a painter and revolutionary that she helped to escape the police. She becomes an actress because it will make it possible to track him down, and she spends the next several decades acting out that search in various genres and eras.
(Credit: Imdb)

Review:

I didn't watch this movie yet so I can't make a review but if you did please let us know what you think :)

Trailer:


Related Links:

Trailer: Mihman87

DDL:

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

Online Streaming: Youtube

Curiosities:

Awards:

Fant-Asia Film Festival:

Best Animation Film: Satoshi Kon

Fantasia Ground-Breaker Award: Satoshi Kon


Mainichi Film Concours:

Ofuji Noburo Award: Satoshi Kon


Sitges - Catalonian International Film Festival:

Orient Express Award: Satoshi Kon


Awards Nomination:

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

Saturn Award: Best DVD release

Annie Awards:

Outstanding Achievement in an Animated Theatrical Feature

Outstanding Directing in an Animated Feature Production: Satoshi Kon

Outstanding Voice Acting in an Animated Feature Production: Miyoko Shôji as Chiyoko Fujiwara's voice

Outstanding Writing in an Animated Feature Production: Satoshi Kon and Sadayuki Murai

Motion Picture Sound Editors, USA:

Golden Reel Award: Best Sound Editing in Feature Film - Animated - Sound: Masafumi Mima

Online Film Critics Society Awards:

OFCS Award: Best Animated Feature

Satellite Awards:

Golden Satellite Award: Best Motion Picture, Animated or Mixed Media

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Excel Saga

Aka: Ekuseru Sāga / Quack Experimental Anime Excel Saga / Heppoko Jikken Animêshon Excel Saga
Director: Watanabe Shinichi
Episodes: 26
Release date: 2000
Language: Japanese
Subtitle: English (Hard-subbed)
Genre: Adventure, Animation, Comedy, Fantasy, Mature 18+, Romance, Sci-Fi

Starring:
Kotono Mitsuishi as Excel
Shinichi Watanabe as Nabeshin
Satomi Koorogi as Menchi
Takashi Nagasako as Pedro
Wataru Takagi as Koshi Rikudo

Synopsis:
Excel works for Across: an organization bent on world domination to create a better society. She ain't exactly great at her job but she definitely tries hard. And with her new partner from outer space she ain't giving up.

Meanwhile 3 roommates get a job with a weird government agency, a foreign construction worker is forced to be the love slave to the embodiment of the universe (a vortex with slender womanly arms) and a man with an afro gets into all sorts of weird messes that remain unexplained.

And this is only the tip of the iceberg to this hilariously twisted series!
(Credit: Imdb)

Review:
One of the funniest animes I've seen. Most of the episodes are a spoof of very well known animes like Dragon Ball or Doraemon and some movies like Titanic and so on. A must-watch for fans of really crazy and funny animes.

Trailer:


Related Links:

Trailer: DoctorZhao
Online Streaming: AnimeCrazy
Download Links:

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Download the manga Here

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Serial Experiments Lain

Aka: Shirialu Ekusuperimentsu Lein

Director: Nakamura Ryutaro

Episodes: 13

Release date: 1998

Language: Japanese

Subtitle: English (Hard-subbed)

Genre: Animation, Fantasy, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Suspense

Starring:

Kaori Shimizu as Lain Iwakura
Rei Igarashi as Miho Iwakura
Ryunosuke Ohbayashi as Yasuo Iwakura
Yoko Asada as Arisu Mizuki

Synopsis:

A week after Chisa committed suicide, her classmates begin to receive emails from her. Hearing rumors fly at school, a quiet withdrawn girl named Lain goes home that day, turns on her dusty Navi computer for the first time and has a conversation with the dead girl.

Chisa's message reads that she killed herself because she didn't need her body anymore, and she now exists in The Wired. When Lain asks why someone would do something like that she gets a response: "Because God is here".
(Credit: Imdb)

Review:

It's a pretty interesting anime, very different from the animes I usually watch. I don't regret having watched it and I guess you won't regret it either.

Trailer:


Related Links:

Trailer: Starbrigid

DDL:

Ep 01: 01 - 02 - 03

Ep 02: 01 - 02 - 03

Ep 03: 01 - 02 - 03

Ep 04: 01 - 02 - 03

Ep 05

Ep 06

Ep 07: 01 - 02 - 03

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Ep 11: 01 - 02 - 03

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Online Streaming: Veoh


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