casting howl's moving castle
"That night, as she sewed, Sophie admitted to herself that her life was rather dull. Instead of talking to the hats, she tried each one on as she finished it and looked in the mirror. This was a mistake. The staid gray dress did not suit Sophie, particularly when her eyes were red-rimmed with sewing, and since her hair was a reddish straw color, neither did cateripillar green nor pink."
I have a very particular idea of Sophie in my head that was very hard to realize in an actual person. At times she must be timid and doe-eyed and at others, all steel and strong will. Eyebrows, naturally, are very important, as I imagine Howl has been on the receiving end of some capital-L Looks. Imogen is quite suitable, I think. And she's indisputably lovely, but at the same time she has the kind of beauty than can sometimes go unnoticed. As an added bonus, she does have an exceptionally long nose.
"Sophie got herself to the mirror, and found she had to hobble. The face in the mirror was quite calm, because it was what she expected to see. It was the face of a gaunt old woman, withered and brownish, surrounded by whispy white hair. Her own eyes, yellow and watery, stared out at her, looking rather tragic."
Old Sophie was also quite tricky. She is a rather quirky old lady - possibly even a little mad, considering the pleasure she derives from muttering to the inanimate. She can't be too dignified or severe, as she is really an 18 year-old at heart, after all. She isn't a sweet old thing, either, as she has quite a short fuse where Howl is concerned and will not hesitate to scold him within an inch of his life.
"He was such a dashing specimen, too, with a bony, sophisticated face-really quite old, well into his twenties-and elaborate blonde hair. His sleeves trailed longer than any in the Square, all scalloped edges and silver insets."
I am in love with Howl. I am also in love with Leroy. Ergo, they are a good match. I like Leroy because he's very striking but not conventionally handsome. He looks sharp and intelligent. He has gone through several hair colors, which is a necessity. He can look very haughty and vain, but he has the cutest, most heart-melting smile ever when he's unguarded. He gets an A+. Other possibilities included Ben Barnes and Alex Pettyfer, both of whom are a bit too pretty and dull behind the eyes for my liking.
"When she began to get her breath, she realized there was a person standing in front of her, holding the door too. He was a head taller than Sophie, but she could see that he was the merest child, only a little older than Martha."
I think I had already subconsciously cast William Moseley as Michael in my head while reading the book, because he fits the part so well. He's kind, earnest, a little stocky, and not of any exceptional sharpness. Just a sweet, steady sort of guy. I can just see him worrying about Howl's expenditures, laughing with Sophie (except when she goes on one of her tidying rampages in his bedroom, the madwoman!), and daydreaming about his Lettie Hatter.
"How Sophie recognized the Witch would be hard to say. Her face was different. Her hair, instead of being orderly chestnut curls, was a rippling mass of red, hanging almost to her waist, and she was dressed in floating flutters of auburn and pale yellow. Very cool and lovely she looked."
Nicole came to mind for the witch mostly because she has the perfect hair, always, but also because she has a very specific kind of beauty - delicate and well-preserved. The Witch is described as being very carefully beautiful, and I think this works well for her. And I like Nicole when she's evil.
"Martha was thinner and fairer and almost looked like herself again."
Haley's face is just the most adorable thing, and it has in it the resourceful sweetness of Martha. This girl could definitely be the mastermind behind a switcheroo spell. I wouldn't put it past her at all. If you squint, she could also possibly be related to Imogen and Emmy through one parent but is definitely the Fair Tiny One.
"She looked just like Lettie. She was wearing Lettie's second-best blue dress, a wonderful blue that suited her perfectly. She had Lettie's dark hair and blue eyes."
Obviously this was the easiest choice to make, once I'd settled on a Sophie. Emmy and Imogen are sistas from another mista, I'm certain of it. I like that Emmy is also more classically and obviously beautiful. In short, with a little blue eye doctoring, perfect for Lettie.
"True, her own mother died when Sophie was two years old and her sister Lettie was one year old, and their father married his youngest shop assistant, a pretty blonde girl called Fanny."
While putting this together, I scoured the internet for hours and hours in desperate search of someone who resembled an older Haley Bennett, and I was rewarded. The universe had already come up with Anne Heche, no doubt expressly for this purpose. Thank you, universe.
"Everything in the room was blue and gold and white, and small and fine. Mrs. Pentstemmon was finest of all. She was tall and thin, and she sat bolt upright in a blue-and-gold embroidered chair, supporting herself rigidly with one hand, in a gold-mesh mitten, on a gold-topped cane. She wore old-gold silk, in a very stiff and old-fashioned style, finished off with an old-gold headdress not unlike a crown, which tied in a large old-gold bow beneath her gaunt eagle face. She was the finest and most frightening lady Sophie had ever seen."
Helen Mirren is the quintessential badass lady d'un certain age. She definitely has the elegant, upright comportment down pat, and there's such a sharpness to her. I think she perfectly captures Mrs. Pentstemmon's unique mixture of kindness and sheer intimidation factor. Even Howl gets in line when confronted with this face.