'Howl's Moving Castle'

Fathom Events' Studio Ghibli Fest 2024. Photo by Brett Homenick.

"This is Operation: [Howl's Moving Castle]." -- Don Frye, Godzilla: Final Wars (2004)

I'm sure I've mentioned it here before, but I've never been a fan of Studio Ghibli. I suppose it would be a bit more accurate to say that I've never been into anime in general. It's just never been my thing, though I guess I can see why others would be into it. Under other circumstances, I might have become a fan myself.

To the best of my knowledge, the only Ghibli film I'd seen before tonight was My Neighbor Totoro (1988), which was shown on video in one of my classes back in the day. Honestly, I can't remember if we even finished the thing, but that (more or less) had been my only exposure to Ghibli.

While going to the movies a month or two ago, I noticed the above advertisement promoting something called Studio Ghibli Fest. One title in particular stood out to me -- Howl's Moving Castle (2004). Pretty much every Ghibli fan I've spoken to has essentially the same opinion: It's just not that good. So you may be wondering why that, of all the movies being screened, would catch my attention.

In early 2005, I read in a Godzilla fanzine that Godzilla: Final Wars (2004) got its clock cleaned at the Japanese box office by Howl's Moving Castle. I knew absolutely nothing about that film and hadn't even heard of it until then. But, in that moment, the two movies became inextricably intertwined in my mind.

Howl's movin' and groovin'. Photo by Brett Homenick.

So that brings me to tonight when I caught a screening of Howl's Moving Castle at the nearby multiplex. The version I saw was the English dub with Christian Bale as Howl, by the way.

What did I think? Well, not much, I'm afraid. I have to agree with the folks who've told me over the years that the movie isn't very good. There are no memorable characters, the story and set pieces are all off-the-rack, and the climax was downright dull. What am I saying? The whole movie was dull. I was bored to distraction throughout.

The image of the moving castle itself was pretty impressive, but that's the only positive thing I have to say about it. Otherwise, I was indifferent to the flick. If I'm being honest, I just don't think Ghibli's animation quality lives up to the hype. That's not to say that it's bad or even mediocre, just that it doesn't measure up to the endless praise I read online -- in my humble opinion, anyway.

Here's a quote for the poster: "Better than Howl's Moving Castle!"

It's rather interesting to read the drubbing that Francis Ford Coppola's latest opus, Megalopolis (2024), is receiving from critics and audiences. I saw the film last night and thought it was pretty good -- not great, but certainly not the unmitigated disaster some are trying to make it out to be. Watching the two films back to back, I can safely say that Megalopolis is much more satisfying. 

Suffice it to say, that itch has been scratched, and I can put Howl's Moving Castle away and (in all likelihood) never think about it again. It's too bad Japanese audiences went with the wrong film in late 2004, but it's not like we can do anything about that now.

Come to think of it, how about Don Frye as the voice of Howl? Now that's some inspired casting!

A Visit to the Ghibli Museum!

One of the few sights at the Ghibli Museum you're actually allowed to photograph. Photo by Brett Homenick.

While I've been in Japan for a very, very long time, there is one place I'd never visited that many other fans of Japanese films went out of their way to make a destination: the Ghibli Museum in Mitaka, Tokyo. What can I say? I've just never been that interested in Ghibli films. In fact, I'm pretty sure that, to this day, I've only seen one: My Neighbor Totoro (1988), which I saw at school once. Suffice it to say, it didn't leave much of an impression on me.

The only reason I went there today was because it was part of a work-related field trip. If it were up to me, I probably wouldn't have gone. But I did think it was a good opportunity to do something a bit different for me, and -- who knows? -- maybe it would inspire me to check out more Ghibli movies.

As expected, however, I found myself mostly bored. If you're as unfamiliar with Ghibli as I am, and -- quite frankly -- if you're no longer a child, then I don't think there's much to recommend about it. All the kids I saw seemed like they were having fun, and more power to them. I'm just not the target audience. Still, I'm glad I gave it a shot, as it used to be something I gave some consideration about visiting. Maybe I should have gone on a day when the temperature was a tad less blistering!