Miyazaki’s version of Howl’s Moving Castle offers one of the best descriptions of depression: a state of mind where everything becomes sticky, sickly and dangerous to those involved. And which manifests through – and thrives on – a perpetual state of disorder, a growing mess, on which it builds to create a burden that pins one down until it’s impossible to move, see ahead, think, breathe, or do anything other than lie there, depressed and impotent.
The way out? A little help from a few helping hands, a push in the right direction, and a good cleanup that renders the place functioning again so that the spirit may move about freely once more, doing its magic.
Sometimes that’s all it takes: motion, inspiration, and a space to function.
Studio Ghibli: an inspiration to us all.
Of course, one needs to acknowledge the OG herself – the author of Howl’s Moving Castle, Diana Wynne Jones. Her novel is one of the most empowering stories ever written.
If you haven’t read it, do so. It’s a treat.
And so is the film.
From the bays of a sunny and breezy Pearl Coast
