Howl's Moving Castle: Walt Disney on acid

I absolutely adore Princess Mononoke (the film, not the Princess) and Spirited Away, and therefor am a huge fan of Hayao Miayazaki. He has this [I'm an asshole]post-modern[/I'm an asshole] sense of folklore... his imagination is so vivid! A crazy/japanese balance between aggresive creativity and classy restraint. This guy has an ancient spirit.

But, as amazing artists often do, he's gotten lazy. Maybe it's cause he's a certifiable oji-san, but his recent animation wonder, Howl's Moving Castle, felt a lot like a Miyazaki film, ya know? Like how a source can become self-referential if it doesn't constantly re-invent the wheel. I'd even say the reason the academy nominated Howl's Moving Castle this year is to encapsulate the work of this man, not this film in particular. Like when Return of the King got a jillion awards, and the other Lord of the RIngs got nuffin'. And like how the Academy Awards are fart on a poop. No, fart on my poop.

Yeah, his most recent crazy was definitelly crazy, but felt more crazy in it's story, than the world and it's characters. I mean, don't get me wrong, an old-timey multiple-location wormhole-door is definitelly awesome, and Howl's apprentice's beard/cloak/disguise made me feel all topsy like the wacky, mos' def. But bird figures with human faces? Black goo monsters? A silent, bouncing sidekick? [Generalizing racism]When the Japanese are on, they are a-maz-ing. But when they aren't, well, it's pretty annoying.

Nah, I'm just being a bitch. The visuals were all flawless and (possibly more importantly) right for the story. And, as usual, it felt like you were right there with the characters, in every dank grotto, inferno-ing townscape, and sweet, cool range of foothills. Making your audienc feel present is very difficult, I think, and it's often done really half-assedly. Miyazaki can certainly craft a *real* fake world. But when you're consatnly out-doing what plain you've conviced everyone to meet you on, you start to numb people. You're so obsessed with moving up, that you don't notice that moving up, itself, is a static place to be. Same reason Family Guy sucks.