| 6/20/2005 |
STEAM by Peter Gabriel
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Howl's Moving Castle (A-) is a fantastic movie. You don't have to have an appreciation for animation to enjoy this movie. It has a well-written plot and very believable characters. Set in a world where a war is ravaging the countryside, cities operate surprisingly well without any modern conveniences, and magical happenings are common place. A world that I recently learned was called steampunk genre. I guess I'd heard of the genre, but never new what exactly it meant.
I had seen this movie advertised on IMDb quite a bit. It was just a fluke that I noticed it in the paper last weekend. It was only playing on one screen and I can't imagine it will be there long. It just doesn't seem to have a wide market appeal. Which is a shame.
The story follow Sophie, a plain Jane hat maker, as she falls in love with the mysterious Howl, a wizard known by many names. Having been rescued by Howl, Sophie finds her life taking an unexpected turn when she is visited by The Witch of the Waste. The Witch is trying to get Howl's heart. She too is in love with him. She curses Sophie, trapping her in an old woman's body, unable to speak of the curse that she is under. She leaves to find a cure for her curse. Along the way Sophie meets a scarecrow she calls Turniphead, a wizards apprentice, Markl, and a fiesty fire demon named Billy Crystal. Ok, so his name is Calicifer, but you know it's Crystal's voice from the first line he spits out. She adopts Howl's Castle as her home, cleaning up after Howl and Markl. In learning about Calicifer's curse, Sophie accepts an exchange if she can get her own curse lifted.
Meanwhile, a Prince has gone missing and a war has broken out between two countries. Magicians of all kinds are being summoned by their respective nations to fight for their country. Having pledged himself to two different King's under two different names, Howl's fesses that he doesn't want to fight for either one. He doesn't want to be tied down. He doesn't want to feel like he has any responsibilities. What Howl finds is Sophie.
I love the fact that the characters in these movies just take such magical and impressive events as such commonplace occurrences. Gooey monsters chasing you? Oh that happens to someone every once in a while. A huge shanty walking over the hills? That happens at least once a week. It's all part of the type of film, and I love it! It inspires the imagination. These stories are modern day fables and fairy tales with morals to the story.
The voice acting is very well done. I enjoy playing the game of Guess Who's Voice played each person. Billy Crystal would be my only reservation. Once I realized it was him, he's all I could picture when Calicifer spoke. But that's not a slam. He does the part well.
Even though, the movie is just shy of two hours, there is a moment where the story is kind of slow. You know something is going to happen. You know the big climax is coming, but they spend a few too many extra minutes talking about details that I don't want to spoil. They probably could've left it out of the theatrical release and included them on the Extended DVD and all would be fine. Or it could be I was so looking forward to finding out how the movie ends that I didn't want to waste any time with backstory. I've accepted that a huge castle moves around on four chicken legs and is run by a sentient ball of fire. You don't have to explain to me why Howl felt safe in a cottage in the hills.
It is amazing on the big screen. But I think most people would be ok seeing it no matter what the screen size is. It's family friendly, but it's not necessarily a kid's cartoon. I will definitely own this movie. |
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I posted this @ 6/20/2005 03:02:00 PM.............Need a link?..........
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