Howl's Moving Castle

Plot

The film is set in a parallel world of Europe in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, where magic goes hand in hand with the development of technology. The modest life of the hatter Sophie changes completely when the walking castle of the mysterious wizard Howl, known for "stealing" girls' hearts, appears on the outskirts of her town. Rescued by this blue-eyed young man from the molestations of two military men, she falls in love with him. However, the exciting walk with him costs the young hatter her beauty and youth. On the evening of Sophie's meeting with Howl, the jealous Witch of the Wasteland shows up at Sophie's house and turns the girl into an old woman. This event forces Sophie to leave her home and travel in despair to the Wild Wasteland, which is notorious for breaking the curse. Along the way, she comes across a garden scarecrow, Scarecrow-Repka, who gives Sophie a cane and helps her get into a strange structure, Howl's Castle. "Grandmother" Sophie, without asking the owner's permission, appoints herself as a cleaner of this strange giant mobile home on steel "chicken legs". Over time, she gains a family in the castle, albeit a somewhat strange one. The castle is home to the fire demon Calcifer, Howl's apprentice Markle, and Howl himself, a powerful young wizard and master of the castle. Sophie wishes to break the Witch of the Wasteland's curse, but even the witch herself, who has cast the spell, cannot do so. It also turns out that the spells lie on Howl himself, Calcifer, Scarecrow-Repka, and even the Witch of the Wasteland. To unravel the mysteries of the curses and break them, the heroes have to go through many trials and adventures.

"The Walking Castle (Jap ハウルの動く城 Hauru no ugoku shiro, literally "Haula's Moving Castle") is a full-length animated film released by Ghibli Studios in 2004. It was created by Japanese director Hayao Miyazaki based on the fairy-tale novel of the same name by British writer Diana Wynne Jones. It was nominated for the 78th Academy Award (2006) for Best Animated Feature Film, but lost out to Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Werewolf Rabbit. According to Miyazaki, the prototype for Howl's castle is a Russian hut on chicken legs.

Plot

The film is set in a parallel world of Europe in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, where magic goes hand in hand with the development of technology. The modest life of the hatter Sophie changes completely when the walking castle of the mysterious wizard Howl, known for "stealing" girls' hearts, appears on the outskirts of her town. Rescued by this blue-eyed young man from the molestations of two military men, she falls in love with him. However, the exciting walk with him costs the young hatter her beauty and youth. On the evening of Sophie's meeting with Howl, the jealous Witch of the Wasteland shows up at Sophie's house and turns the girl into an old woman. This event forces Sophie to leave her home and travel in despair to the Wild Wasteland, which is notorious for breaking the curse. Along the way, she comes across a garden scarecrow, Scarecrow-Repka, who gives Sophie a cane and helps her get into a strange structure, Howl's Castle. "Grandmother" Sophie, without asking the owner's permission, appoints herself as a cleaner of this strange giant mobile home on steel "chicken legs". Over time, she gains a family in the castle, albeit a somewhat strange one. The castle is home to the fire demon Calcifer, Howl's apprentice Markle, and Howl himself, a powerful young wizard and master of the castle. Sophie wishes to break the Witch of the Wasteland's curse, but even the witch herself, who has cast the spell, cannot do so. It also turns out that the spells lie on Howl himself, Calcifer, Scarecrow-Repka, and even the Witch of the Wasteland. To unravel the mysteries of the curses and break them, the heroes have to go through many trials and adventures.