CRISTINA ANTONIO (reikomegame)

Finding Nemo G

Hauru no ugoku shiro (Howl's Moving Castle) PG

Not as good as Spirited Away, but definitely one of my favorites! This isn't just a story about finding your one true love, or about how war is evil: Miyazaki's films have ingrained meaning in them that would only make itself known to you once you think about the film in its entirety after seeing it. One of the best parts i must say for me, would be during the near-end of the movie, when Sophie gave back Howl's heart. If i'm not mistaken, it signifies many things one of which is that, men will truly love a woman who is willing to give them back their heart...for only a selfless woman would be so gentle and so kind as to set the man she loves free, even is she is doubtful that he might not come back. Another would be Sophie's journey inside the dark room, where she sees Howl's childhood. I think it's a clever embodiment of how men truly want to be understood, and not just men, but people in general. Sophie wanted to help Howl, but she was only able to accomplish that by going back and understanding his entire story. It shows us that we can never really help someone, unless we truly understand... There are more life lessons to be learned from this movie, and to speak of it as plainly an animation whose plot has been overused so many times is just absurd. Miyazaki's works delves deeper than his animations and wonderful characters: it challenges us to find what's hidden in front of our eyes. He is amazing at bringing human emotions into characters that are most of the time doubtful, insincere, selfish, but kind - much like real people. Though it is mostly entertaining, it's surprising how it tries to reach the human heart.