Review of IMDb Top 250 Films - Howl's Moving Castle (2004)

I intend to conduct a review of the top 250 films on the IMDb database. At a rate of two per month this will still take forever as the list constantly changes. I don't claim to be a very knowledgeable or intellectual film critic but have tremendous confidence in my ability to discern good direction, script and acting, and to expose films which have enjoyed / endured an undeserved reputation in my perhaps arrogant opinion. There may be a few minor spoilers in my reviews.

Howl's Moving Castle - Rating: 2.5 out of 6

After I waste time seeing a crap film I don't like to waste more time writing a full and considered review so this will be short.

Effectively this animation is a poor man's Shrek capitalising on a glorious opening, some gorgeous music, some star names, and of course special effects (I understand the moving castle animation is supposed to be 'awe-inspiring'). Until Sophie moves into the castle the film is just wonderful: it looks beautiful, it has a simple uncluttered story, we love Sophie, we sympathise with her during her transformation by the Wicked Witch of the Wastes, and how poignant are her insights into old people's lives....if it would have carried on like that what a film it could have been! But then it turns into an illiterate mess (I exaggerate not), with its highly unoriginal cosmopolitan fire demon voiced by Billy Crystal (compare with Eddy Murphy's hilarious donkey in Shrek), similarly cliched little boy and a groaning chain of fudgy, muddled situations straight out of a dream but with none of the emotional engagement. And as with all the worst action movies the heroes win due to coincidence or some random supernatural power we find out about only in the critical life or death situation! And as for the villains, how or why exactly were they villains and why the change in the WWW's character after she 'moves in' to the Castle? There was a vague anti-war message which came out of the blue at the end and didn't fit in with the rest of the film and no other 'message' to the viewer of any sort.

This would have received a rating of 2 out of 6 or even lower were it not for the opening ten minutes. Avoid!