Now I've got something I want to protect.

Konnichiwa~

Let me see, what do I wish to discuss this afternoon? I feel like the only things I have to talk about today are either personal or gossipy. I suppose I could rant about The Resistance, but, eh... I don't really feel like it today.

OH I KNOW.
Howl's Moving Castle.

Yes yes yes, I love this film. Even more so than Spirited Away, and I love that film.

It's about a young woman named Sophie who is cursed by the Witch of the Waste and is turned into an old lady. But then other stuff happens and it's awesome.



Right, so. Wizard Howl is a very attractive cartoon, ahem. Not that I find cartoons attractive. That'd be creepy.

Anyway, now I'll really explain what the film is about. Sophie is cursed by the Witch of the Waste, and turned into an old lady. However, the trick with the curse is that it impedes her to tell anyone that she is under it. So she leaves town without telling anyone, because, well, she just can't. She ends up happening upon Wizard Howl's moving castle. It's inordinate, loud, and looks like it's about to fall apart with each step it takes (yes, it does walk. Hello, how it's moving).

Sophie, for lack of a better word, crashes the place as Howl's new cleaning lady. Though Sophie has heard that Howl eats young, pretty girls' hearts, she comes to learn that he is really just an immature, lonely pariah, who uses his magic to intimidate people as a way of being a part of social gossip, even if he's not really a part of society himself. He's too afraid to be out in the open. His fancy clothes and powerful spells are like a means of compensation for his emptiness. It's really quite touching.

The story is partially a romantic one, so, suffice to say, Sophie and Howl develop a close relationship over the course of the movie. No, he obviously does not fall in love with a 90-year-old woman. If you watch the movie, you'll see what happens.

I super super love it. My slave friend Emeline lent me the book (which is very different from the film, but equally wonderful), and I'm currently enamored with it.

So, yep, that's all. Time for history notes.
Until next time!


JUST AS PLANNED!