Howl's Moving Castle is the WEIRDEST Ghibli Film | Blind Reaction 

Can we talk about the fact that Sophie tells howl to find her in the future and his first words to her are “there you are sweetheart I’ve been looking everywhere for you” LIKE ARE YOU KIDDING ME he spent his whole life searching for her 😭😭😭

Just to clear up how confusing the political background of the movie is- Miyazaki made it partly as a critique of the Iraq War! He even rejected to show up at the Oscars when he won because of America's involvement. So a huge theme in the movie is how pointless and draining war is, something that roots back in Miyazaki's childhood during WWII

“Can Christian Bale say anything without me being terrified or turned on?” No, no he cannot.

At the beginning of the movie you can hear two men in the background saying something like “the prince is missing” and “looks like they’re gonna start a war” so thats essentially the war plot, the scarecrow was the prince all along and thats why the war stopped when he’s found

"back off, lady, he's mine. I mean Sophie's" god, if that ain't a mood

Some fun facts about the movie: 1. It's based on a book that sort of parodies(?) (its not really a parody, but it points out a lot of tropes and cliches) the fantasy genre. I've heard the plot makes complete sense there. Ghibli basically took all the cool scenes and none of the plot lol. 2. As per the book, it's set in Wales! Like, modern-day Wales 3. The American release wanted to edit it heavily, like they often did back then, and Ghibli mailed them a fucKING KATANA WITH A LETTER SIMPLY SAYING 'No Cuts.' WTF??

For whatever reason "Oh no, she got babushka'd!" made me absolutely lose it 😂

I love the 16 odd minutes of you just simping for Howl and his voice and the rest of it just you supporting Sophie absgajsks

Love this movie. The books are even more batshit crazy, somehow. Howl's a narcissistic brat that was a rugbyman in Wales before deciding to isekai himself to this place and Sophie's a magical red head with one hell of a temper and even bigger self esteem issues. Also. Sweetie. EVERYTHING is hand drawn.

"That's my girl." STOP THE WAY I SLAMMED MY TABLE 💳💥💳💥💳💥💳💥💳💥💳💥💳💥

Danny's energy for Christian Bale, I'm here for it😆

I think "oh never mind he's sexy" sums up all of our first reactions to Howl lol, I love this movie.

Sometimes a family is you, a beautiful mess of a man that turns into a bird, his young apprentice, a man cursed to be a turnip on a pogo, the sentient fire demon he enslaved and a shadow of the witch that cursed you.

It's weird because the book it's based on has a rather intricate plot that's only gradually revealed, and halfway through the story, Miyazaki went, "Nah, we're not doing that!" and completely changed everything in the second half.

The whole "fantastic but people within the setting treat the fantastic as commonplace" is a genre called Magical Realism. It's a very fun genre to write, we covered it in writing class my freshman year of college.

"BACK OFF LADY HES MINE- I MEAN SOPHIE'S!" he never fails to make me laugh😂

I’m just saying, Christian Bale’s voice did something to me when I watched this movie for the first time as a kid and I have NEVER been the same since 😂

It’s so funny to see Danny react exactly the same way I did to the first scenes with Howl 😂 first with the “who is this man, why is he talking to her” then to the “oh well hello there sir, I can be your girl 😍”

Did you know when Christan Bale applied to be in this movie, he wasn't expecting to play Howl. But thank God he did because his voice is amazing.

“A man dressed as a nutcracker” had me laughing out loud! It’s funny cause it’s true 🤣

It’s actually based off of a book by Diana Wynne Jones. The book goes a lot deeper into the political part of it and explains more about the curse. In the book Sophie is a witch herself she just doesn’t know it yet. It is her lack of self-esteem that truly puts the curse on her which is why the witch of the waste couldn’t undo the curse. In the end Sophie finding her confidence breaks both her curse and Howls. :)

CAN WE TALK ABOUT HOW DRAMATIC HOWL IS THRU THIS WHOLE ORDEAL LIKE🤣🤣🤣I love him so much

This is actually based on a novel which is honestly 1000% more nuts. Like the scarecrow is the product of almost Frankenstein like necromancy

"SHE GOT BABUSHKED!" Was the best expression I've ever heard 😂

Another surprising voice actor in this is the voice of Markl, the little apprentice boy. He's voiced by Josh Hutcherson who plays Peeta in the Hunger Games movies.

I read once that Miyazaki was a kid during WW2. He experienced the worst of times during what should’ve been his whimsy years. That’s why he’s so dang good at writing magical, serious, loving stories.

Dude you NEED to see Spirited Away. If you’re looking for wild ghibli movies, the character design and existence of the world is nuts. If you haven’t already, of course. Or even if you have! I’d personally love to see your take on that childhood favorite!

"He sounds like a 40 year old in a 20 year olds body" Oh Danny, I think you would LOVE Aaravos

"Sophie push her off!!" my mom said the same thing when she watched this movie XD

Love watching reviewers blame Gibblie and Japan for the insanity of Howl's Moving Castle while the novel readers are complaining that it could have been weirder and miss the Wales references.

So fun facts 1) The movie is based off of a book by the same name written by Diana Wynne Jones. Howl and Sophie appear as minor characters in 2 more of her books. 2) Both Miyazaki and Diana Wynne Jones were survivors of WW2. Diana used her works to make a place for people to escape from the realities of war while Miyazaki made it a point to include the horror of war in his works so that people would not forget. The possibility of "war" was one line in the books and its inclusion in the movie skews a lot of character motivations. Howl especially is a lot less "tragic hero" and a lot more "hot mess/drama queen". 3) The book manages to be even crazier and has even richer world-building on account of being longer. If you are interested in learning more about the dog, the scarecrow, Calcifer, the magic portal door, and the witch getting her just desert go and read the book. 4) Diana loves both versions of the story despite them being so different. She said once that the book is how Sophie would tell the story and the movie is how book Howl would tell the story. So with a tone of scenes highlighting his attractiveness and a random background war thrown in for flavor.

Christian Bale’s voice was perfect for Howl’s character. Loved it! And Sophie’s voice is so soothing!

I love the little detail of Sophie gradually getting younger as the film goes on as she slowly becomes more confident in herself. At the beginning when the witch first curses her, she appears are 80-90 years old (possibly revealing how she feels on the inside) but as the movie goes on (like right after they face Soloman) Sophie appears around 40-50 years then returns to her normal age during the climax. It shows how she slowly grows more confident in herself. It could also pay homage to a plotpoint in the books. I haven't read them fully myself, but I do remember a friend explaining how in the books Sophie is actually a witch too and that's part of the reason the curse eventually fades without Howl or the witch doing anything. I personally like to think of it as a little mix of the two. 😁👍 awsome reaction and commentary man. If you like this, I highly recommend watching Kiki's Delivery Service and Spirited Away.

"Why is this lady growing armin's?" don't mind me as i cackle my way through this reaction XD

Danny: This word is really well fleshed out I feel like this could be part of a series Me: DANNY ITS A BOOK SERIES

Howl's Moving Castle is my comfort film, even when the world is going to absolute shit, Sophie never loses hers. She's such a great character and even though it is wildly different from the book, it is just a good. I'm surprised you didn't comment on the music since its such an iconic track for Ghibli, but the whole movie is a lot so that made sense XD

12:15 I can't remember which interview it was, but I remember one of the main focuses for Lady Eboshi's design in Princess mononoke was "make her look as COOL as possible" lol.

This is the kind of movie you can watch several times and learn something new about it. You’ll never get bored of it. At least in my opinion. The animation is lovely, the voice acting is superb, and there is so much going on that you feel like it’s an actual world. 10/10

2:50-3:00 My genuine reaction to that was, "Ya didn't check the cast list before watching? You think having Christine Bale in this flick is nuts, well we got a baby Josh Hutcherson playing Markl!" Ahahah love ya, Danny, keep being your wonderful self.

'Why is this lady growing Armins' caught me so off guard I somehow managed to slam my face into my desk and then proceeded to laugh hysterically for the next minute.

I cannot recommend enough that you listen to the Howl's Moving Castle audiobook narrated by Jenny Sterlin! It is the best audiobook in existence, and it's also different enough from the ghibli movie to be a whole new experience!

This movie is unbelievably amazing and I’m glad you liked it

Okay this is literally like my favorite movie ever so a few fun facts: 1: it’s actually based off of a book! The book us 10x more confusing, but I quite liked it. 1a:The entire war theme was not in the book, but was put in by miazaki for portraying anti-war themes. 1b:The author actually didn’t picture the castle having legs, but instead would float everywhere. 1c: howl was actually like a modern day college student lol. He created a portal to a new world, being the one we see him in. 1d: in the book, he carries around a guitar, and on one of the covers you can see it’s a bright red strata-caster electric guitar. 1e: in the book, Markl is actually called Michael, and is 15 instead of like 9. 1f: Sophie actually had 2 sisters, one being a half sister. 2: after my watching it (literally) 10 times, there are some scenes that hint at howl liking Sophie from the beginning, and Sophie falling for him gradually. For example, what’s the VERY first line he says to Sophie? “There you are, I’ve been looking for you everywhere” (or something along those lines). We know however that she went back in time and told child howl to “find [her] in the future”. Sooooo conclusion? He was looking for her this entire time. Additionally, the reason the war was going on(you can hear two background characters mentioning it towards the beginning of the movie) is because the neighboring kingdom’s prince had gone missing, and they had accused them of kidnapping him, when in reality, he had just gotten cursed and was turnip head. Oh! Also, the voice of Markl is the actor of Peta from the hunger games, but as a child. Anyways, seriously my favorite favorite movie. 10/10, would recommend!

I love the type of shows that just throw into the middle of something and barely explain things, because that's just how the world goes. It isn't my favorite Ghibli movie, mine is Ponyo for nostalgia reasons, but I do love Howl's moving castle.

You’ve got to read the book too- in the book Sophie has magic that exists intrinsically so the more confidence she gets the more the curse starts to break.

If you’re going to do more Ghibli movies I recommend ‘Porco Rosso’. It’s fun and lighthearted with some great characters. Definitely one of my favourites, up there with ‘Princess Mononoke’ of course.

the turniphead twist is so badly foreshadowed lmao, there's like. one sentence said referencing the missing prince in the first five minutes of the movie and,,, that's it

NOOO I’m watching this video 12AM, trying *desperately* not to laugh, while my family thinks I’m asleep just a curtain away for them to see/ hear me. This straight up one of the funniest reviews I have EVER seen. And I’m super impressed by how you were able to fit a 2-hour long film into 20 minutes! Btw princess Mononoke is also my fav Ghibli film after howl’s moving castle.

The movie is based on a 3 trilogy book series with howls moving castle being the first of three? The authors name is Diana Wayne Jones. It's a good series been since high school since I've seen it. * edit Also Danny I don't watch many youtubers. Like any. Legit your the only one I put time aside for. Lol keep it up my dude.

YES I LOVE HOWLS MOVING CASTLE I’m excited to see you watch it >:D(LOOK AT THE PICTURE IN THE BACKGROUND I LOVE IT LOL)

It's hidden deep in the aside chats - The war was kicked off because "a prince in the neighboring country has gone missing" and all the finger pointing begins, so all the magic people get drafted. The prince was Turniphead, which is why he dropped the "I'll go stop the war now" at the end.

If it feels like the two plots are entirely separate it’s because. They are. The war plot wasn’t in the original media The book is really quirky and Sophie’s narration is wonderful! I highly reccomend it in book form as well, even if I do love the movie

This has always been my favorite Ghibli film (and film in general, though I'm not much of a movie person). I love the casual magic, the found family, the strangeness, and I love how it manages to be small and huge at once. Its weirdness is a draw for me, but I do understand that disconnected plots like this aren't for everyone!

they did sections of the castle on pieces of glass then layered them and moved them around to mimic motion

It’s interesting you said Howl has a “rockstar attitude” because that’s basically his angle in the book this movie is based on. I think In the book Howl even had a guitar

If you haven't seen it, you GOTTA see Spirited Away! It's my absolute favorite movie of all time with fantastic world building, characters, and themes!

Fun Fact: One of the customers in Lettie's shop asks if they have "Lettie-shaped cookies"... What's worse is that she actually turns around to get some for the guy...

Dude, Danny THANKS MY BOI!!!!! Howl's Moving Castle is my favorite studio Ghibli movie. I didnt even know Christian was in this movie. I love it for the story and the amazing animation that was put into it.

"Oh no she got babushkad!" Beautiful

Nearly end of the film Sophie: "It's me Sophie! I know how to help you now! Find me in the future! " Beginning of the film Howl: "There you are sweetheart sorry I'm late, I was looking everywhere for you" There are a lot of sorta easter eggs that you discover while rewatching the film like this, or the fact that Howl build a moving castle just to look for sophie, didn't make alliances because he didn't know which was Sophie's city and WAITED and SEARCHED her his whole life, i cannot-😢❤ Thus movie has my heart, forever❤

I love your humour, something I really need during some rubbish times. You're so funny and your reactions are just brilliant, love it ❤️😂

13:16 had me laughing so hard, i was wheezing, crying and clutching my stomach. Im still having random bouts of laughter as i write this, thats how hard it hit me 😂😂😂 I think bc its such a sweet touching moment ("cause we're a family!") followed by an unexpected dub of Danny casually thirsting over Howl as Sophie. Thank you for making this video Danny, and thank you for the inevitable random fits of laughter I'll surely have thru out the rest of my day thinking about ur commentary, but mostly 13:16😂

"I've never been so intimidated by a man dressed as a nutcracker" 😂 I love your sense of humour

Danny Motta, simping over Howl's voice while staring into the camera with big brown eyes and lashes longer than my attention span, got me clutching my pearls and fanning myself.

I’m this movie after watching it a few times, and I’ve watched it plenty, this whole movie is a time loop type scenario, where howl is searching for Sophie all of their lives and the time line repeats like a fated love, a cursed love… it’s unfortunate and tragic

The scene where Howl first comes through the black door and stransforms back tho..

I didn't realise Mark Hamill was Muska in Laputa(Disney version) until this year and I've been watching it my whole life. So many good actors do voice acting in dubs

"Oh! He's back for revenge!" 🤣🤣🤣 I was NOT prepared for that line. 🤣

This is my favorite all time movie. Your commentary is spot on. Thank you for this. I needed a good cackle with my coffee this morning.

All the little details that are put into this movie make me love it so much. Like how howl built the entire castle and traveled everywhere just to find her. And how calcifer let Sofie into the castle because he has howls heart. The list goes on and on and every time you watch it you find something new

It’s so trippy being named similarly to this character (Sophia), constantly being told to have better self esteem, and to suddenly hear that from the video too. There’s no problem with it! I just found it funny 😅

HE DIDNT INCLUDE THE FALLING TOWEL SCENE. I FEEL CHEATED

8:02 Howl fr be like: "Feeling depressed. Might turn into a minecraft slime block"

I grew up watching Studio Ghibli movies in general but this one was always on in one way or another. I was giggling the whole time watching your reactions! This was honestly so fun, being able to watch this through your eyes and hearing your takes made my whole day!

2:23 I laughed way to hard at that😂😂😂 Edit: I don't think I have ever continuously laughed all the way through a blind reaction. Thank you😂 this was amazing!!

Your reaction videos are quite enjoyable. The actual reactions are humorous and relatable. Also your breakdowns are well thought out. They are the reason I subscribed.

I was wheezing throughout the whole video - especially with they alley scenes 🤣🤣🤣 Wolf Children might be something you're interested in reacting to, next. Keep Up The Good Work~!

14:21 that "BASCUSE ME" got me

Holy moly its been a while since I saw this movie

My favorite Ghibli moving is The Secret World of Arietty, it's so visually interesting and beautiful and just a cute movie of forbidden friendship. It's very sweet. Even if you don't want to react to it, I recommend you to definitely watch on your own at least once :)

This is my absolute favorite movie of all time. Always hits me in the feels. Edit: For me, Sophie's low self-esteem is totally relatable, and that moment when she cries bc of Howl's breakdown bc of his hair, totally there with her the first time. Like, dude.

"Calsophie" was right there and you went with "Sophalcipher"? Regardless, this is the best movie review I've ever seen and I was gasping for breath by the end with how hard I was laughing.

Youre the 2nd video that popped up when i searched for a reaction to this. Glad to see the channel hyping up 😊

Saw your thumbnail and realized I've actually never seen the movie, despite hearing about it/having it on my watchlist for years, so I watched it before your review & I gotta thank you for that -- I was grinning like a little kid for almost the full 2+hrs! Great review, as always! ^u^

fun fact, this is miyazakis love movie to the book, which is the original. If you pick up a newer copy of the book you can read a cute interview that he and the author had on the back

I love watching people react to magical movies like these, but your reaction to it is also SO funny 😆😆 you’re genuinely. hilarious

Hi Danny! Ugh this was such a good reaction video. I really didn’t want it to end😭 Your reactions and analyses were so on point; I absolutely agree with everything and I just kept laughing throughout. I'm probably going to bingewatch some other reaction series of yours tonight, like TGCF and others I recognise. Thanks for your hard work!❤❤❤

"Guuuurl, you walked down the wrong ally way." So many good lines from you after this one. Miyazaki can definitely be unhinged at times, but we get soot sprites, so it's not all bad. Lol.

Just saw your reel on fb and loved your comments, had to watch the whole video

One of the reasons the movie may seem quite confusing is that it is actually a remake of a book named howl’s moving castle but they could not include all of the political aspects in it because the movie would be too long

4:30 "oh no she got babushkaed" was hilarious haha (I hope that's in one of your youtube shorts clips)

The reason why this movie is so dense with world-building is because it’s based off a book (very good, highly recommend)

I feel like I had to rewatch this one 5 times before I finally felt that I understood the whole story. I absolutely loved it!!!!

the bean sheep at the beginning of the movie live rent free in my head

Christian Bale went from magical birdman to Batman 😂

“It feels like the eight movie in a franchise you’ve never even heard of” is so funny bc the book is the first of a trilogy 😭

“OH NO SHE GOT BABUSHKADE” GOT ME!

Hearing Howls voice is like being wrapped in a warm scarf. I love him so much.

Howl's Moving Castle is probably my absolute favorite childhood movie, and still is as an adult. I've watched both the danish version (the one I grew up with), english version and japanese version. As well as read the books. Ofcourse I'm biased, but danish is still my absolut favorite. Feels closer to the original movie, and Howl's voice feels softer. But no matter ther version, I've loved them all. If anyone here haven't watched the movie itself, definatly do it. It’s wonderfull.

2:50 You immediately recognized Christian Bale while I'm still thinking of 2:23 trying to place Ron Stoppable's voice actor.