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Movies / Upcoming / Howl's Moving Castle
Howl's Moving Castle

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Howl's Moving Castle (2005)

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Reviews Counted:144

Fresh:123

Rotten:21

Average Rating:7.4/10

Consensus: Exquisitely illustrated by master animator Miyazaki, Howl's Moving Castle will delight children with its fantastical story and touch the hearts and minds of older viewers as well.

Runtime: 1 hr 59 mins

Genre: Childrens

US Box Office: $4,520,887

Synopsis: Academy Award®-winning director Hayao Miyazaki ("Spirited Away") takes moviegoers on an amazing new animated adventure that celebrates the power of love to transform and the resiliency of the human... Academy Award®-winning director Hayao Miyazaki ("Spirited Away") takes moviegoers on an amazing new animated adventure that celebrates the power of love to transform and the resiliency of the human spirit in the face of adversity. Brimming with a blend of imagination, humor, action, and romance, "Howl's Moving Castle" recently played to great acclaim at the 2004 Venice Film Festival, and has become one of the biggest blockbusters of all time in Japan – earning more than $193 million at the box office and still counting. A distinguished cast of actors, under the direction of Pixar's Pete Docter ("Monsters, Inc."), lend their vocal talents to this English-language version of the film. Sophie (voiced by Emily Mortimer), an average teenage girl working in a hat shop, finds her life thrown into turmoil when she is literally swept off her feet by a handsome-but-mysterious wizard named Howl (voiced by Christian Bale), and is subsequently turned into a 90-year old woman (voiced by screen legend and two-time Oscar® nominee Jean Simmons) by the vain and conniving Wicked Witch of the Waste (voiced by screen legend and Oscar® nominee Lauren Bacall). Embarking on an incredible odyssey to lift the curse, she finds refuge in Howl's magical moving castle where she becomes acquainted with Markl, Howl's apprentice, and a hot-headed fire demon named Calcifer (voiced by Billy Crystal). Sophie's love and support comes to have a major impact on Howl, who flies in the face of orders from the palace to become a pawn of war and instead risks his life to help bring peace to the kingdom. Extraordinary characters, inventive imagery, and stunning artistry make this latest masterpiece from the visionary Miyazaki an unforgettable filmgoing experience. -- © walt Disney Pictures [More]

Starring: Emily Mortimer, Christian Bale, Jean Simmons, Lauren Bacall

Starring: Emily Mortimer, Christian Bale, Jean Simmons, Lauren Bacall, Billy Crystal, Blythe Danner, Josh Hutcherson

Director: Hayao Miyazaki

Director: Hayao Miyazaki
Screenwriter: Hayao Miyazaki
Composer: Joe Hisaishi
Producer: Toshio Suzuki
Studio: Buena Vista Pictures

[See More Credits]

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    Exclusive Clip: 'Howl in Battle'
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    Clip: We're Moving
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    Clip: Sophie Finds Howl's Castle
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  • Clip: Escape from Suliman
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    Howl's Moving Castle Trailer
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1 - 4 of 7

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Reviews for Howl's Moving Castle

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1 - 20 (sorted by fresh rating; Australian critics are listed first)
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Another example of how this film maven easily holds the crown in the sadly ever-shrinking traditional animation genre.

Full Review Source: Dark Horizons | comment Comment
10/30/06
Garth Franklin
Garth Franklin
Dark Horizons
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: In Film Australia | comment Comment
08/16/05
Luke Buckmaster
Luke Buckmaster
In Film Australia
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Miyazaki has an appeal that crosses generations. Adult audiences are drawn to the depth and variety of his vision, but so are kids, and for exactly the same reasons.

Full Review Source: Sydney Morning Herald | comment Comment
01/17/06
Philippa Hawker
Philippa Hawker
Sydney Morning Herald
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

There are some truly inspired moments, although this new animation from Japanese writer / director Hayao Miyazaki never reaches the heights of the brilliant Spirited Away.

Full Review Source: Urban Cinefile | comment Comment
09/18/05
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

IN THE ANIMATED WORLDS of Hayao Miyazaki, the border between the domestic and the magical, between the everyday and the astounding, lies no further away than the nearest broom closet or backyard.

Full Review Source: Boston Phoenix | comment Comment
06/11/05
Boston Phoenix

Miyazaki's engaging touch for the surreal counterpoints the film's antiwar message nicely.

Full Review Source: E! Online | comment Comment
06/10/05
E! Online

With its bold screen-filling imagery, this is definitely a movie to be relished on the big screen.

Full Review Source: Globe and Mail | comment Comment
06/10/05
Globe and Mail

The latest animated tour de force from the Japanese director Hayao Miyazak is a fitting introduction to one of modern cinema's great enchanters.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
06/09/05
A.O. Scott
A.O. Scott
New York Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

As much of a hand-drawn treat as Spirited Away, chock-full of numinous sunsets, fabulous organic machinery and gratuitously delightful touches.

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
09/24/05
Andrew Osmond
Andrew Osmond
Empire Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

For the first time, the Master's wondrous imagination feels slightly... familiar.

Full Review Source: The Stranger (Seattle, WA) | comment Comment
06/09/05
Andrew Wright
Andrew Wright
The Stranger (Seattle, WA)

few other films, or indeed filmmakers, would dare take a scene in which two elderly women struggle to climb a staircase and turn it into an extravagant and memorable set piece.

Full Review Source: Eye for Film | comment Comment
07/10/07
Anton Bitel
Anton Bitel
Eye for Film

Emphatically passionate and fraught with greater meaning.

Full Review Source: Tooele Transcript-Bulletin (Utah) | comment Comment
06/23/05
Audrey Rock-Richardson
Audrey Rock-Richardson
Tooele Transcript-Bulletin (Utah)

It's hard to imagine a film more imaginative and creative than this latest work from the world's premier animator.

Full Review Source: Denton Record Chronicle (TX) | comment Comment
06/15/05
Boo Allen
Boo Allen
Denton Record Chronicle (TX)

Too abstruse for general American audiences. But if sheer animated beauty is up your alley, Miyazaki’s latest is an inviting daydream, easily worth your time.

Full Review Source: Now Playing Magazine | comment Comment
06/10/05
Brent Simon
Brent Simon
Now Playing Magazine

While the plot of Howl’s Moving Castle doesn’t always take off, Miyazaki’s flights of artistic fancy dazzle, frame by exhilarating frame.

Full Review Source: Vue Weekly (Edmonton, Canada) | comment Comment
06/27/05
Brian Gibson
Brian Gibson
Vue Weekly (Edmonton, Canada)

The visuals cast a spell as wondrous as those that the wizards in the movie create, so the film is well worth seeing.

Full Review Source: Jam! Movies | comment Comment
06/10/05
Bruce Kirkland
Bruce Kirkland
Jam! Movies

So richly detailed and colorful that one almost aches from the beauty.

Full Review Source: Houston Chronicle | comment Comment
06/17/05
Bruce Westbrook
Bruce Westbrook
Houston Chronicle

Positively sings with color and light.

Full Review Source: Bryant Frazer's Deep Focus | comment Comment
08/31/05
Bryant Frazer
Bryant Frazer
Bryant Frazer's Deep Focus

An eye-popping, mind-bending phantasmagoria from one of the greatest living film artists.

Full Review Source: Philadelphia Inquirer | comment Comment
06/09/05
Carrie Rickey
Carrie Rickey
Philadelphia Inquirer

It's like a combination of Beauty And The Beast and The Wizard Of Oz with an extra dose of comedy - not a bad mix for an entertaining fairy tale.

Full Review Source: TheMovieChicks.com | comment Comment
06/10/05
Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone
Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone
TheMovieChicks.com
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by fresh rating; Australian critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 >> >|
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Latest News for Howl's Moving Castle

August 21, 2008: Japanese Audiences Flocking to Miyazaki's Latest Opens in new window
He delighted audiences with Spirited Away and Howl's Moving Castle -- and now director Hayao Miyazaki is doing it all over again with his latest film, Ponyo on the Cliff by the... More...

March 20, 2007: Will Miyazaki's Next Film Be His Last?
It's been speculated that legendary animator Hayao Miyazaki will retire after the release of his next film, "Ponyo on a Cliff," but now it looks like we'll have at... More...

October 19, 2006: Critical Consensus: "Flags" Flies High; "The Prestige" Is Magic; "Flicka" Is A Pretty Good Ride; "Marie Antoinette" Spared Critical Guillotine
This week at the movies, we've got a complex tale of heroism (Clint Eastwood's "Flags of Our Fathers," starring Ryan Phillippe), a story of dueling magicians... More...

October 03, 2006: Miyazaki Prepares Next Animation Classic
Let's face it: When the director of "Spirited Away," "Princess Mononoke," and a whole bunch of other brilliant pieces of animation announces that he's about... More...

See All

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