Howl's Moving Castle is the moving story of Sophie, who gets cursed by a witch and finds herself working as a cleaning lady in a wizard's castle. The movie has so many different themes running through it: witches, wizards, magic, and curses, falling in love, and a war between two nations. The story is extremely touching, as it is about a young woman who finds confidence during a chaotic adventure.
As there is so much going on in the movie, the different storylines can be difficult for both longtime fans of Hiyao Miyazaki and casual viewers to follow. As such, audiences may have found that they missed some of the film's many details after they first watched it.
Christian Bale Voices Howl
Howl is a complicated character: there is a part of him that is miserable and wants to hide from the world, a part of him that is juvenile and self-centered, but there is also a part of him that cares deeply for others. A lot of the film involves Howl gradually opening up and learning how to be vulnerable with others.
Howl's voice is charismatic, but as the film is animated and so fans do not see the actor who plays Howl in the movie, they may have missed that Howl is actually voiced by A-lister Christian Bale. Howl's Moving Castle is one of Bale's best movies, according to IMDb, and is one of the few animated projects he's done in his career.
The Witch Of The Waste Is A Spurned Lover Of Howl's
It is the Witch of the Waste who casts a spell on Sophie because she sees Sophie with Howl. It later transpires that the Witch of the Waste and Howl used to date, but once Howl realized who she really is and what an ugly personality she has, he left her. The Witch of the Waste never got over Howl and still seeks his heart for her own, which is why she is so jealous of Sophie.
Towards the end of the movie, the Witch Of The Waste even sets herself on fire by holding Calcifer, when she realizes Calcifer is Howl's heart. Fans may have missed this storyline, as there is so much else going on in the movie, but it explains why the Witch initially casts a spell on Sophie and the motivations of the Witch.
The Curse Turns Out To Be A Great Thing For Sophie's Character
When Sophie is first cursed by the Witch of the Waste, she is devastated and embarrassed. This is why Sophie runs to the mountains, where she finds Howl's Moving Castle. However, this turns out to be the best thing that could have happened to Sophie. Not only does this lead her to the castle and her new family, but being older also gives Sophie the confidence to be herself.
Sophie finds that being when she is older, she does not have anything to lose and, because of this, she can be open and is not concerned with what others think of her. This is much needed for Sophie, who was previously so shy and timid.
The Witch Of The Waste And Sophie Are Opposites
What makes Miyazaki's Howl's Moving Castle a feminist work of art is its focus on its female protagonists. While Sophie is initially meek and shy, she turns into a confident woman whereas the Witch of the Waste is initially extremely outspoken but becomes softer and gentler. Whereas Howl loves Sophie when she appears older but is actually very young, Howl does not love the Witch of the Waste when she appears young but is actually much older. Fans may not have noticed that these two characters are actually mirrored images of each other, and they have a lot in common.
Sophie Has Conversations With A Dog
When Howl convinces Sophie to meet with the King as his mother in order to convince the King that her son is too much of a coward to assist in the war, Howl promises Sophie that he will be close behind her. When a dog starts following her, Sophie thinks that it is Howl in disguise and spends the walk to the castle talking to the dog. When they reach the castle stairs, Sophie realizes that the dog cannot climb the long set of stairs ahead so she picks it up and carries it the rest of the way.
However, it turns out the dog is actually Madam Suliman's errand pet rather than Howl in disguise. This is one of the rare funny moments in the film, as poor Sophie goes out of her way for a dog she has never even met before! This scene is one the of most humorous in the film and includes one of the most memorable quotes in Howl's Moving Castle.
Sophie's Age Changes [A Lot]
At the very beginning of the film, Sophie is young but, after Witch of the Waste curses Sophie, she ages dramatically. She stays this way for quite a while but gradually looks younger at moments. When Sophie looks younger, she does not always look the same age and appears as a range of different ages. When Sophie sleeps, she also looks like her younger self.
While fans will most likely have noticed this, they will probably not have noticed why. While it is never explained why Sophie looks younger when she sleeps, Sophie appears young in moments when she is confident and advocating for herself and her loved ones. It seems to be this which gradually weakens the curse and, by the end of the movie, when Sophie is generally happy and confident in herself, the curse is pretty much gone.
The Castle Mirrors Howl's Character
The castle stays hidden and shows different faces to the rest of the world. The castle appears as different buildings and masks itself to fit in in different places. The castle is constantly on the move but moves in a very clunky and effortful way as it is weighed down by all the various compartments of and baggage in the castle.
Just like the castle, Howl has different aliases in different places, tries to hide from others, and is heavily weighed down by his past. The castle reflects Howl's multi-faceted character and, when Sophie cleans all of the castle, she is also metaphorically cleaning up Howl's personal baggage.
Calcifer Loving Sophie Is Howl Loving Sophie
Calcifer takes to Sophie very quickly. Calcifer does what Sophie asks, which Markl notes Calcifer never does. When Sophie tells Calcifer she likes Calcifer's spark, Calcifer appears to blush and then beams with delight, making to castle move at a greater speed. Throughout the movie, fans see Calcifer caring for Sophie in a way that is unseen between Calcifer and any other character.
As Calcifer is Howl's heart, when Calcifer learns to care for and love Sophie, it is actually Howl's heart learning to love and care for Sophie. Fans may have missed this detail, as for much of the film Howl and Calcifer are presented as two distinct characters.
Sophie Might Be A Witch
Sophie jokes a few times in the film that she is a witch and lots of fans will have interpreted this as Sophie simply messing around. However, some fans have speculated that Sophie does actually have witch powers. There are a number of times in the movie that this is hinted at: Turnip Head comes to life when Sophie speaks to him and when Sophie whispers to Calcifer, Howl's heart is able to return to Howl's body.
While this is never confirmed once and for all in the movie, fans may have missed the possibility that Sophie has powers. Sophie's powers are made more obvious in the book, making this one of the movie's biggest changes from the book Howl's Moving Castle.
Calcifer Appears As A Heart Early On In The Film
When Sophie is cleaning the castle, pretending to be a cleaning lady in order to stay in the castle, she removes Califer from the fireplace in order to sweep out the ashes. Sophie puts Calcifer in a pot while she does so, and ignores Calcifer's pleading to be put back. Calcifer's flames dwindle and when Howl picks Califer up, Calcifer is shown as a beating heart surrounded by a blue flame in Howl's palm. Later in the movie, fans do learn that Calcifer is in fact Howl's heart, but many fans will have missed that the movie shows Calcifer as a heart very early on in the movie.
NEXT: What The Voice Actors In Howl's Moving Castle Look Like In Real Life