Influenced by Miyazaki's opposition to the United States' invasion of Iraq in 2003, the film contains strong anti-war themes. She encounters a wizard named Howl and gets caught up in his resistance to fighting for the king. The film tells the story of a young, content milliner named Sophie who is turned into an old woman by a witch who enters her shop and curses her. The story is set in a fictional kingdom where both magic and early 20th-century technology are prevalent, against the backdrop of a war with another kingdom. The Japanese voice cast featured Chieko Baisho and Takuya Kimura, while the English dub version starred Jean Simmons, Emily Mortimer, Lauren Bacall, Christian Bale, Josh Hutcherson and Billy Crystal. The film was produced by Toshio Suzuki, animated by Studio Ghibli and distributed by Toho. The film is loosely based on the 1986 novel of the same name by British author Diana Wynne Jones. Due to that, Madame Suliman lured her into drain her magical powers and restoring the witch into her actual appearance she is currently powerless.Howl's Moving Castle ( Japanese: ハウルの動く城, Hepburn: Hauru no Ugoku Shiro) is a 2004 Japanese animated fantasy film written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki. She cursed Sophie because of her jealousy towards Howl's interest in Sophie to a 90 year old hag, she is capable of some form of telekinesis, as seen when she opened the locked door to Sophie's hat store. Even though the demon had drained her magic for many years she was still capable of casting curses, but not able to reverse them. The relationship between her and the demon became parasitic and began to drain her and her magic. She used to be a good witch until she made a pact with a fire demon.
The Witch of the Waste was a very powerful and feared witch with a vast arsenal of magical abilities. Near the end of the novel, Howl kills the Witch when arriving at the Waste to rescue Sophie. Howl has spent the past year hiding from the Witch while trying to find Prince Justin and Wizard Suliman. In her first appearance in the novel, she curses Sophie by turning her into an old woman (she mistakes her for Lettie). The Witch of the Waste is far more terrifying in the novel as she serves as the antagonist. She is voiced by Lauren Bacall in the English dubbed version. Initially the antagonist, the Witch becomes somewhat of a protagonist after Madame Suliman lures her to the castle to drain her of her magical powers, restoring the Witch to her actual appearance and age, and replacing her as the antagonist in the movie. You who swallowed a falling star, oh heartless man, your heart shall soon belong to me.' Through Sophie's pocket, the Witch uses ancient sorcery to put a powerful spell on Howl in the form of a note. As Sophie leaves her hometown in order to break the curse on her, she reaches Howl's castle. That is why she arrives at night to Sophie's hat shop, and insults her before turning her into a 90 year-old woman.
She is still in love with Howl however, and uses her magical powers and henchmen to try and capture him after seeing him with Sophie. She is a talented witch who was so beautiful that Howl pursued her, but after finding out that she used magic to keep herself looking young and beautiful, he left her. Out of fury and the need of his head for her human puppet, the Witch cursed him so that he would be forced to return to the Waste. Fifty years before the events of Howl's Moving Castle, the current King's father banished the Witch to the Waste, and the Witch bore the current King a grudge for that.Ī year before the events in the novel, Wizard Howl pursued her, and later jilted her. The relationship between her and her fire demon was parasitic, as the demon was draining her and her magic.
Decades before the beginning of the novel, the Witch caught a falling star which became her fire demon.