‘Howl’s Moving Castle‘ is easily one of the top tier Studio Ghibli films, and in fact, may be one of Miyazaki’s best films period. It’s a sweeping epic, gorgeously animated, and features some of the most memorable characters in any of his films, possibly only topped by what could be considered the crown jewel of his career, ‘Castle in the Sky’, his first film. In a way, ‘Howl’s Moving Castle’ and ‘Castle in the Sky’ could be looked at as companion pieces, because they both bring a very fun and exciting adventure to the table, and two very lovable main characters. It’s great to see Disney delving into the back catalog of Studio Ghibli films and remastering them for blu-ray. Fans have been clamoring for a release of ‘Howl’s’ outside the DVD for years, and Disney finally listened, bringing fans the film they love, in a way they’ve never seen before.

Sophie is a young girl who works in her family’s hat shop, keeping to herself and doing here work. But when a chance encounter with a mysterious man named Howl, her life is flipped upside down. Her encounter brings the evil Witch of the West into her life, who curses the young Sophie, turning her into a 90 year old woman. Bent on breaking her curse, Sophie sets off an adventure that she never anticipated, and one that will change her forever.