RATING: 4/5
CHAPTERS: 1 (END)
AUDIO: JAPANESE
SUBTITLE: CHINESE/ENGLISH
INTRODUCTIONS:
This film is about a young beautiful 18 years old girl by the name of Sophie, who had a chance to meet the handsome but mysterious wizard Howl, who rescues her from some menacing soldiers. Howl charms her with his looks and dashing feats of magic, briefly sparking happiness in Sophie. But later that night, the vain and jealous Witch of the Waste appears in Sophie's hat shop in the form of an obese, wealthy woman, along with two of her minions. The Witch hints at a prior connection to Howl (the Witch of the Waste once came to Howl as a beautiful young woman, which there Howl pursued her as a lover, but rejected her after seeing her true form. The Witch now assails Howl with the fury of a jilted lover) and curses Sophie by transforming her into a 90-year-old woman before disappearing.
Because of her mysterious transformation and afraid that people will ask questions (not to mention the fact that the transformation spell also prevents her from telling others of her predicament), Sophie runs away from home and journeys into the Waste. There, she befriends a magically animated scarecrow whom she names Turnip Head. Turnip Head secures her shelter from the Waste within Howl’s moving castle, a chaotic ensemble that walks upon mechanical chicken legs.
The story continues with Sophie meeting up with different characters along the way and how she fell in love with Howl. This is truly an amazing work from Studio Ghibli under the directorship of Hayao Miyazaki, who along has directed other award winning Japanese anime such as Spirited Away.
