Every Studio Ghibli Movie Ranked From Worst To Best

Miyazaki once more turned to children's literature with Howl's Moving Castle, and it turned out to be a smart move as the film won the studio their second Oscar nomination for Best Animated Feature. That doesn't mean it's one of the better offerings in the series though.

Having said that, it is a complex and entertaining affair, it's just rather let down by the needlessly convoluted ending. It definitely has more of the spirit you'd expect of the main series, but it doesn't have any narrative discipline. It's a rare case of Miyakazi's free-form approach to story looking like a negative, and none of the twists feel particularly earned.

There's obviously still some bizarre charm in there and it looks gorgeous, but it just feels like it could have benefited from more restrictions.