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Cut for, well, spoilers.
Or at least spoiler-based speculation. I saw the longform trailer for Howl's at the theater last night, and what my guesses below are based on that. I should also mention that the projectionist was having trouble with the reel, so the picture and sound were not at top quality. That out of the way, onward to some spoilers.
The movie looks as gorgeous as any of Miyazaki's works, but it doesn't look like it's going to have very much to do with either the original or the Japanese version (according to the Japanese friend I was with). If I'm interpreting what I saw correctly, Sophie and Howl are already together at the beginning of the movie, the plot of which involves a quest to return Sophie to her natural form. We can also anticipate some major adjustments to the characters' personalities; the trailer features an extended scene where Sophie's sobbing her heart out in the middle of a field; this struck me as very un-Sophie-ish. Another scene which featured what looked like warfare. At the very least, we can anticipate that a city somewhere is going up in flames.
I'm still struggling with the knowledge that good 'ol Kimutaku is going to voice Howl (Oh who am I kidding. WHY GOD, WHY???), and my friend feels the same way.
"I really like Howl," she told me. "But I can't believe they got that guy to do his voice. It could be a disaster."
As is to be expected, the fact that one of SMAP's finest is voicing the male lead was all over the trailer, but his voice was ever so coyly hidden by VOs every time Howl was talking in the footage, so I can't make any judgment calls on it yet. Incidentally, I will probably start watching SMAPxSMAP this Monday in the vague hope that they'll have some Howl's parody skits, product placements, or tie-ins that might offer more clues about the movie. I'm a fandom tool that way.
The theme song is even sappier than Sen to Chihiro's, and features the requisite soprano singing about 'love' and rainbows and chocolate lollipops. But who knows, it may grow on me (StC's sure did).
Other random observations: didn't see Sophie's sisters anywhere, so I don't know if they'll be making an appearance or not. My friend and I both agree that Howl looks too young for the role, and that the castle, while not either of our castles, is still way cool looking. Calcifer is PERFECT. He was only shown for about half a second, but it was enough to make me and my friend squeal. Oh, and the scarecrow makes an appearance too! And because I can't say it enough, the animation is gorgeous.
So, final verdict? I remain very psyched. Opening night is only twenty days away (or eighteen, if my name gets drawn in the lottery for sneak preview tickets). I'll be a little disappointed if the movie diverges from the book, because I adore the book. But, Miyazaki has never made a movie I haven't adored either, so I'm willing to bet that whatever new plot they cook up is going to be fantastic.
これで以上です。
Or at least spoiler-based speculation. I saw the longform trailer for Howl's at the theater last night, and what my guesses below are based on that. I should also mention that the projectionist was having trouble with the reel, so the picture and sound were not at top quality. That out of the way, onward to some spoilers.
The movie looks as gorgeous as any of Miyazaki's works, but it doesn't look like it's going to have very much to do with either the original or the Japanese version (according to the Japanese friend I was with). If I'm interpreting what I saw correctly, Sophie and Howl are already together at the beginning of the movie, the plot of which involves a quest to return Sophie to her natural form. We can also anticipate some major adjustments to the characters' personalities; the trailer features an extended scene where Sophie's sobbing her heart out in the middle of a field; this struck me as very un-Sophie-ish. Another scene which featured what looked like warfare. At the very least, we can anticipate that a city somewhere is going up in flames.
I'm still struggling with the knowledge that good 'ol Kimutaku is going to voice Howl (Oh who am I kidding. WHY GOD, WHY???), and my friend feels the same way.
"I really like Howl," she told me. "But I can't believe they got that guy to do his voice. It could be a disaster."
As is to be expected, the fact that one of SMAP's finest is voicing the male lead was all over the trailer, but his voice was ever so coyly hidden by VOs every time Howl was talking in the footage, so I can't make any judgment calls on it yet. Incidentally, I will probably start watching SMAPxSMAP this Monday in the vague hope that they'll have some Howl's parody skits, product placements, or tie-ins that might offer more clues about the movie. I'm a fandom tool that way.
The theme song is even sappier than Sen to Chihiro's, and features the requisite soprano singing about 'love' and rainbows and chocolate lollipops. But who knows, it may grow on me (StC's sure did).
Other random observations: didn't see Sophie's sisters anywhere, so I don't know if they'll be making an appearance or not. My friend and I both agree that Howl looks too young for the role, and that the castle, while not either of our castles, is still way cool looking. Calcifer is PERFECT. He was only shown for about half a second, but it was enough to make me and my friend squeal. Oh, and the scarecrow makes an appearance too! And because I can't say it enough, the animation is gorgeous.
So, final verdict? I remain very psyched. Opening night is only twenty days away (or eighteen, if my name gets drawn in the lottery for sneak preview tickets). I'll be a little disappointed if the movie diverges from the book, because I adore the book. But, Miyazaki has never made a movie I haven't adored either, so I'm willing to bet that whatever new plot they cook up is going to be fantastic.
これで以上です。
