HOWL'S MOVING CASTLE — *** 1/2 — Animated feature dubbed with the voices of Jean Simmons, Christian Bale and others; rated PG (violence, mild vulgarity, brief partial nudity, brief gore).

There are certain filmmakers whose works always bear watching, such as Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg. And those who recognize the name Hayao Miyazaki would definitely add him to that list.

The Academy Award-winning animator ("Spirited Away") has a vivid, visually interesting style that separates him from others in his field.

He's also one of few animators these days who still works exclusively in the traditional cel-animated style. Miyazaki's animation teams work with computers only when absolutely necessary, eschewing gimmicky digital effects for a more "artistically pure," hand-drawn look.

Admittedly, appreciation for his films can be a matter of taste. And his latest, an adaptation of Diana Wynne Jones' best-selling, young-adult fantasy, "Howl's Moving Castle," is one of his most peculiar works.

It would probably take multiple viewings just to take it all in, to fully understand the film's nuances. Yet it's entrancing, with more magical and laugh-out-loud moments than any other animated feature so far this year.

The title structure, "Howl's Moving Castle," is exactly that — a mobile "castle" on legs that's occupied by a magician named Howl (voiced in this English-language version by Christian Bale).

Howl has also given the castle the power to be in multiple places at once, as Sophie (the voice of Emily Mortimer) discovers. The young hatmaker has been cursed by a witch and now finds herself 90 years old (at which point the venerable Jean Simmons takes over the voice role).

Running away from home, Sophie stumbles onto the castle, where she meets and befriends Calcifer (Billy Crystal), a fire demon who promises to lift her curse if she finds a way to free him from Howl's servitude. Instead, she finds herself getting involved with Howl, who's trying to stay out of a war going on between various wizards and kingdoms.

Some of the storytelling is a little unclear, though the obvious messages about the meaning of beauty, as well as a very strong anti-war sentiment, come through loud and clear. And there is much to appreciate visually. The castle itself, which sports "legs" and facial features, is truly a sight to behold.

The voice cast seems to be having a great time, too. It's terrific to at least hear Simmons again, while Bale sounds looser here than he has for quite some time. And Lauren Bacall gets some of the film's bigger laughs as the voice of the witch.

Crystal's distinctive voice, however, is a bit of a distraction and feels like stunt casting. (He took the part as a favor to his "Monsters, Inc.," director Pete Docter, who oversaw the dubbing process.)

"Howl's Moving Castle" is rated PG for scenes of animated violence (explosions, creature attacks and moments of peril), some mildly vulgar humor, brief partial male nudity, and some brief gore. Running time: 119 minutes.

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E-mail: jeff@desnews.com