I think we can all agree that there’s nothing quite like watching a Studio Ghibli movie for the first time – especially one that was written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki. Miyazaki’s works have a magic about them that is almost indescribable, and each film is a vibrant, melancholic dream packed with complex characters, gut-wrenching storylines, and themes that often reflect political issues and topics such as environmentalism (Princess Mononoke), fascism (Porco Rosso), and Western consumerism (Spirited Away).
Howl’s Moving Castle, the tenth movie in Miyazaki’s filmography and the fourteenth on Studio Ghibli’s roster, first hit Japanese theaters in 2004. The film tells the story of an eighteen-year-old girl named Sophie (Emily Mortimer, Jean Simmons) who, shortly after meeting a wizard named Howl (Christian Bale), is turned into an old woman by the ever-jealous Witch of the Waste (Lauren Bacall). Sophie’s only hope is to board Howl’s castle in the sky, as he is the only one who can reverse the curse.
Though based on the 1986 novel of the same name by Diana Wynne Jones, the film is thematically different in that the plot is structured around a war – and it’s been said that Miyazaki was directly influenced by his own opposition to the United States 2003 invasion of Iraq. Over the last 20 years, the movie has often been regarded as an anti-war movie, with many journalists and critics analyzing the film as it relates to present-day politics and other invasions and occupations. I hardly ever see Howl’s Moving Castle celebrated as a love story, despite Sophie and Howl’s love for each other subsequently becoming the thing that ultimately stops the war.
A heart’s a heavy burden
There are so many details and intricacies that make Howl and Sophie’s romance so magical, so much so that eight-year-old me cried her eyes out when they finally share their first kiss at the end of the film (and 31-year-old me gets tear-eyed just thinking about it). Howl and Sophie couldn’t be more different, but they end up complementing each other in a way that helps the other grow. Howl is a pretty boy, obsessed with his own beauty and vanity, and Sophie is less than confident in her looks and abilities, even when she’s in her normal, young body. Howl falls in love with Sophie despite the fact that she’s been turned into an elderly woman, and while the “beauty is in the eye of the beholder” trope can be cheesy at times, there’s something so heartwarming about it here.
When Howl and Sophie meet at the beginning of the movie, he’s warm and excited and presumably taken with her beauty – and the excitement doesn’t waver after she becomes old. Some cynical takes on the film have posited that it was easy to fall in love with her because he already knew what she looked like as her normal self, but any viewer with an open heart knows that it’s about her selflessness, the way she takes care of both the castle and Howl and helps him confront the things he can’t bear to.
The other detail, perhaps the biggest one for me, is one that is often missed upon first watch. When Howl and Sophie meet at the beginning of the film, she’s being harassed by soldiers. Howl whisks her away, saying to her, “There you are, sweetheart. Sorry I’m late. I was looking everywhere for you.” Upon first watch, it might just seem like Howl is saying that to get her out of an uncomfortable situation, but it’s because – at the end of the film – Sophie creates a time loop where she meets a young Howl and tells him to find her future and tells Howl to look for her. He finds her, because he spent all of those years looking for her. Because of the time loop, they are destined to be together – and he would find her in every universe. In the end, the king’s sorceress and the prince from the enemy kingdom decide to end the war after observing Sophie and Howl’s unconditional love for each other. We get a beautiful, final shot of the two kissing on the balcony of a new moving castle as bombs fly overhead.
Howl’s Moving Castle has many beautiful and important messages tucked inside of it, but people seem to overlook the love story – the driving force of the film, and the thing that saves the world. I recommend watching the film with your significant other, your best friend, or your two cats, along with a big box of tissues.
Howl’s Moving Castle is streaming now on Max. For more, check out our list of all the new anime movies and shows you need to know about.