DETECTIVE CONAN: THE MILLION-DOLLAR PENTAGRAM
Boy Detectives Head to Hokkaido
Venue(s): 109 Cinemas Premium Shinjuku, possibly there are more. Please check theater sites: www.conan-movie.jp/2024/news/p_44_en.html, and look for 英語字幕.May 24 (Wed), 2024-: Check theaters for timetable.
Language: English with Japanese subtitles
Official website: www.conan-movie.jp/2024/index.html
Trailer: https://bit.ly/3Kb0Ruj
Tariff: Please check on the theater sites.
Title: 名探偵コナン 100万ドルの五稜星（みちしるべ） (Kimitachi wa Do Ikiruka)
Director: Chika Nagaoka (永岡智佳)
Duration: 111 min
Many of you are aware that Japanese anime series are always the top winners at the domestic box office every year. Here’s your chance to check out the latest title in one of the ongoing BO champions: the 27th title in the enormously popular Detective Conan (aka Case Closed) franchise. Springing from the boy detective manga series by Gosho Aoyama, which has sold some 260 million copies worldwide, a new Conan film has been released in April of each year starting in 1997 (excluding 2020). Because the films all have original plotlines that aren’t adapted from the manga, it’s an annual ritual for many Japanese to go see the latest release in the theater. Now, with this English-subtitled version, you can join them.
Detective Conan: The Million-Dollar Pentagram takes place mostly in Hakodate, Hokkaido, where a mysterious man is found murdered with a pentagram sword carved on his body. Boy detective Conan Edogawa and his sidekick, amateur detective Heiji Hattori, are tasked with finding out the truth, before it's too late.
Returning to the storyline for the first time since 2019 is Kid the Phantom Thief, who announces that he’s going to steal a sword once owned by Toshizo Hijikata, the legendary vice-commander of the Shinsengumi samurai squad. Hijikata died in Hakodate in the 1860s during a battle between the Tokugawa Shogunate army and Imperial government forces.
The charm of Hakodate, said to boast one of the three best nightscapes in Japan (it’s breathtaking in animated form), plays a major role in the film. But it’s the supporting characters and the development of their arcs — including a romance for Heiji — that always brings out the fans every year.
The film marks the third time that female director Chika Nagaoka has been at the helm, and she spoke with Nikkei Entertainment! in March about the enduring popularity of the series.
"Thanks to the variety of characters," she said, "the production team can make a movie with a totally different aesthetic from previous ones. This keeps drawing new audiences and helps the series go into the next year. Children who watched the earlier movies have grown up and now take their children to see the new ones," Nagaoka said. "This trans-generational popularity is only made possible because the manga series keeps going.
Theaters (Please check theater near you for details.)
Please be sure to check with the theater before going.