Young Sophie Hatter is cursed by the Witch of the Waste, and turns into an old hag. Ashamed of how she looks, she flees into the hills where a moving castle roams the hills. It is said to belong to the young and handsome wizard Howl, who has a bad reputation. Within the castle, Sophie befriends the fire demon Calcifer, who promises to help her become young again. One catch: she must help Calcifer to be free of Howl, and Calcifer cannot tell her how. However, Sophie agrees to stay and try to find out about the contract through other ways. Still, Howl can see that Sophie is under a spell like Calcifer can, and he falls in love with her for who she is and not for what she looks like. Sophie manages to bring life to the moving castle, and she helps Howl to face his former tutor, Madam Suliman.

Hauru no ugoku shiro (2004)
  • Rating: (75,310 votes)
  • Runtime:119 minutes
  • Director: Hayao Miyazaki
  • Country:Japan
  • Actors:
    Sofî (voice: Japanese version)
    Chieko Baishô
    Hauru (voice: Japanese version)
    Takuya Kimura
    Arechi no Majo (voice: Japanese version)
    Akihiro Miwa
    Karushifâ (voice: Japanese version)
    Tatsuya Gashûin
    Marukuru (voice: Japanese version)
    Ryûnosuke Kamiki
    Koshô (voice: Japanese version)
    Mitsunori Isaki
    Kakashi no Kabu (voice: Japanese version)
    Yô Ôizumi
    Kokuô (voice: Japanese version)
    Akio Ohtsuka
    Hin (voice: Japanese version)
    Daijiro Harada
    Sariman (voice: Japanese version)
    Haruko Kato
  • Genres:Animation, Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Romance
  • Producers:
    Rick Dempsey
    producer  
    Tomohiko Ishii
    assistant producer  
    John Lasseter
    executive producer  
    Ned Lott
    producer  
    Hayao Miyazaki
    executive producer  
    Toshio Suzuki
    producer  
  • Plots: A love story between an 18-year-old girl named Sofî, cursed by a witch into an old woman's body, and a magician named Hauru. Under the curse, Sofî sets out to seek her fortune, which takes her to Hauru's strange moving castle. In the castle, Sophie meets Hauru's fire demon, named Karishifâ. Seeing that she is under a curse, the demon makes a deal with Sophie--if she breaks the contract he is under with Hauru, then Karushifâ will lift the curse that Sophie is under, and she will return to her 18-year-old shape. Written by Sophie Ball
Hauru no ugoku shiro
  • User's comment:Another wonderful movie from Miyazaki by whitetigah

    (first of all: sorry if my English is not the best out there, but it's not my native language)

    I was lucky enough to see the world premiere (at Venice Film Festival, September 5, 2004).

    Not only the art and animation is breathtaking (with almost no CGI), but the story is also above Miyazaki standards.

    The characters are wonderful, each one with his (or her) own personality. Among them the best is for sure Calcifer, the Fire Demon, who is actually an almost all-powerful being, but is often underestimated by the other characters ("If you don't obey, I'll pour water on you!").

    The music is one of the best parts of the movie. Even if you don't notice it, it is always there, always conveying the right feeling.

    Bottom line: this is an excellent movie. If you liked other movies by Miyazaki (such as Mononoke Hime, Spirited Away, Laputa Castle in the Sky...) you cannot miss it.


  • Quotes: Howl: You're wearing that hat? After all the magic I used to make your dress pretty? Howl: I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't torment my friend. Howl: [Quietly amused] Calcifer? You're being so obedient.
  • Also known as: Howl's Moving Castle (Australia - imdb display title), Howl's Moving Castle (International - English title), Howl's Moving Castle (UK), Howl's Moving Castle (USA), El increíble castillo vagabundo (Argentina), El increíble castillo vagabundo (Mexico - imdb display title), Le château ambulant (Belgium - French title), Le château ambulant (France), Ходячий замок (Russia), A vándorló palota (Hungary), Bogadh Howl's Castle (Ireland - Irish Gaelic title), Das wandelnde Schloss (Germany), Det levande slottet (Sweden), Det levende slot (Denmark), Det levende slottet (Norway), El castillo ambulante (Spain - imdb display title), Howli liikuv kindlus (Estonia - festival title), Howlui umjikineun seong (South Korea), Il castello errante di Howl (Italy), Liikkuva linna (Finland), O Castelo Andante (Portugal), O Castelo Animado (Brazil), Pokretni dvorac (Serbia - imdb display title), Ruchomy zamek Hauru (Poland), To kinoumeno kastro (Greece - transliterated ISO-LATIN-1 title), Yürüyen sato (Turkey - Turkish title), Zámek v oblacích (Czech Republic),

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