Great Character: Hauru / Howl (“Howl’s Moving Castle”)

There are so many great characters in the movies of famed Japanese writer-director Hayao Miyazaki, but I will pick Hauru (Howl) from the film Howl’s Moving Castle [screenplay by Miyazaki, based on a novel by Diana Wynne Jones].

A plot summary from IMDB:

When an unconfident young woman is cursed with an old body by a spiteful witch, her only chance of breaking the spell lies with a self-indulgent yet insecure young wizard [Howl] and his companions in his legged, walking home.

And insecure he is as witnessed by this exchange:

[Howl comes running out of the bathroom, screaming. His hair is now orange] Howl: Sophie! You, you sabotaged me! Look! Look at what you’ve done to my hair! Look! Old Sophie: What a pretty color. Howl: It’s hideous! You completely ruined my magic potions in the bathroom! Old Sophie: I just organized things, Howl. Nothing’s ruined. Howl: Wrong! Wrong! I specifically ordered you not to get carried away! [tragically] Howl: Now I’m repulsive. [slumps into a chair] Howl: I can’t live like this. [starts sobbing, head in hands] Old Sophie: Come on, it’s not that bad. [Howl’s hair changes color to purple, then black] Old Sophie: You should look at it now, its shade is even better. Howl: [inconsolable] I give up. I see not point in living if I can’t be beautiful.

Wizard. Trickster. Talented. Unpredictable. Embodies wisdom. Incredibly childish. A complex, central figure in an entertaining and thought-provoking movie.

Howl: A great character.

Who else loves Miyazaki as a filmmaker?

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