Howl's Moving Castle?

Question

So why did the wicked witch of the waste turn her into an old lady? I still don't get that...-//-

And which do you think was better the movie or the book?

Answer 1

Yes! Finally a question on a book that's pure awesomeness. Ahem . . .

The wicked witch of the waste actually mistook Sophie for Lettie, Sophie's sister who became a witch. She thought Lettie knew where and what Wales was, but then turned Sophie into an old lady because Sophie did not treat her with respect.

The film and the book are so different from each other. The book is better, of course, but the film is also wonderful. The film is a good film in and of itself, which can not be said of Ella Enchanted, which diverged much from its original storyline and still was a terrible film.

Edit: Ah!! Okay, totally erase what I just said. I reread the bit from the book again, and here is what happened:

Okay, so you know the dog, Percival, and how he was actually the combined parts of Ben Sullivan and Prince Justin? And you know how Ben was from Wales, as was Howl? So, the Witch tried to get out of Ben everything he knew about Wales, so she could get to Howl, but Ben tried to resist. He resisted by thinking about Sophie's sister, Lettie, and all he knew about her was that she kept a hat shop in Market Chipping [actually where Sophie was!]. Since Ben and Sophie would not tell the Witch what she wanted, she punished both of them by turning Sophie into an old lady and Ben/Justin into a dog.

Edit [again]: I feel happy for myself right now, because this is actually the first time I've gotten it, too! [I was so busy gobbling up the book- I didn't spend much time trying to get it XD]

Howl pwns over sparkly Cullen anyday! Howl's got better fashion sense than Edward, lol.

Answer 2

She turned her into an old lady because she was jealous of her friendship with Howl.

At least, that's what the creators said in the Special Features of the DVD I borrowed from the library.

I can't honestly say I liked the movie, because it was WAY too messed up, and it didn't make too much sense.

Answer 3

I LOVE this book. And movie.

I might be getting the movie and the book mixed up, but in the book, I *think* she met Howl, before she met the Witch of the Waste. So the Witch turned her into an old lady because she probably thought Sophie was an acquaintance of Howl's. And something about magic, I think. Because Sophie has magic, right? I can't remember if the Witch felt threatened or anything, but that may have been part of it.

I love both the book and the movie. I saw the movie first, before I realized it was based off of a book. And if you go to my profile, Miyazaki is under the list of people I'd bow down to if I ever met them. You have no idea how much I love Hayao Miyazaki's work. It's fantastic. The movie has a different plot than the book, and it's kind of like a different interpretation of Jones's idea, and I respect it for that. So I like them both equally.

I only wish they'd made Markl the age he was supposed to be. But, oh well.

Edit: L is completely right. It's been so long since I read Howl's Moving Caslte... *wistful sigh* Now, if there was ever a fictional character to want, it's Howl XD And I'm not ashamed of it. He's dashing, he's vain, he's a slitherer, he's flamboyant, and he's fantastic. Eddie, on the other hand... cardboard. (Edward Cullen.)