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.
Theatrical Release:23-09-2005
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... [More]
Starring: Emily Mortimer, Christian Bale, Jean Simmons, Lauren Bacall
Director: Hayao Miyazaki
Reviews for Howl's Moving Castle
| Tomatometer | Critic | Review | Category |
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Another work of great imagination and beauty from Hiyao Miyazaki. Full Review |
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A stunning example of a pure, disorienting dream logic that cinema provides all too rarely. Full Review |
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4/5 |
If you're in the market for a brilliant piece of family animation you'd be hard-pressed to find anything better this year. Full Review |
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4/5 |
The hand-drawn animation is breathtakingly gorgeous and there's a huge amount of detail that will reward repeated viewings. Full Review |
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3/5 |
As much of a hand-drawn treat as Spirited Away, chock-full of numinous sunsets, fabulous organic machinery and gratuitously delightful touches. Full Review |
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 3/5 |
Youngsters and Miyazaki fans will coo at the world's depth and rich surreality, but opaque plotting, and a tendency to mope with Sophie whilst Howl is off affecting events let the momentum of the first act vanish into thin air. Full Review |
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3.5/5 |
One of the most unusual and involving animated epics ever put on screen. Full Review |
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Howl's Moving Castle is a perfect epitome of Miyazaki's work, in all its strengths and weaknesses: it's filled with heart-felt themes...but how these elements connect on a plot level is subjugated to how beautifully they are rendered on screen. Full Review |
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A stunning example of a pure, disorienting dream logic that cinema provides all too rarely. Full Review |
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Palaces and shimmering lakes, warplanes and fire sprites all come to life at the breath of Miyazaki's graphic genius. Full Review |
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B |
The film gains a sense of visual wonder almost completely freed from the strains of a narrative-driven film. Full Review |
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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 |
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3/4 |
Another example of how this film maven easily holds the crown in the sadly ever-shrinking traditional animation genre. Full Review |
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3/4 |
A delightfully fanciful movie with engaging storytelling, visual wonders, and such worthwhile themes as contrasting wisdom and perspective with age. Full Review |
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3/5 |
Miyazaki's stunning animation and characteristically vivid colors make the film a visual feast... Full Review |
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4/4 |
So good that it shames virtually every animated film made since Miyazaki's last, Spirited Away, graced movie screens in 2002. Full Review |
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3.5/5 |
Miyazaki has done better, and his epic style might get the best of him in this film a bit. Still, it is nonetheless a journey worth taking. Full Review |
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A- |
If it weren't for "Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit," "Howl's Moving Castle" would be your winner for this year's Academy Award for Best Animated Picture. Full Review |
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3.5/4 |
As a lover of Fantasy and Sci-Fi books and movies, this cartoon appealed me to with its detailed plot and unique world. Full Review |
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4.5/5 |
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 |
CommentLatest News for Howl's Moving Castle
August 21, 2008:
Japanese Audiences Flocking to Miyazaki's Latest 
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...
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