Customer Reviews

Case Closed Movie 5: Countdown to Heaven

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Countdown to Heaven represents my third Case Closed feature film in as many nights. What's this mean besides I really need to get out more? It means that the Case Closed is one of few franchises that can truly be counted on to deliver solid entertainment. This is pretty high praise from a guy who doesn't read mystery books, knows nothing about CSI, and cares little for Sherlock Holmes.

The show, for those who have yet to experience it, follows a pretty formulaic structure whereby the title character happens upon criminal activity that requires a good deal of intelligence to successfully point the finger of blame. Sounds like standard mystery-genre fare so far but what's unique about Case Closed is that the lead is played by a 17-year-old (Jimmy Kudo) investigator who has been transformed, via an experimental drug, into a child. The kid goes by the made-up name Conan Edogawa after two popular mystery writers and goes to live with his friend Rachel Moore and her private detective father, Richard. If you're looking for back story, I strongly recommend considering Funimation's Case Closed DVD Starter Set as except for a narrated opening sequence, the films waste very little time retelling past events.

Coming in at a total runtime of 100 minutes, Countdown to Heaven spans a single DVD housed within a standard-sized clamshell case. The show wears an appropriate if not slightly conservative TV PG rating (due to a steady dose of animated violence rather than inappropriate language or nudity).

Language options are standard sub & dub, which means the viewer has the choice of the original Japanese dialog track (stereo) or an English dub (Dolby Digital 5.1) and the option of running English subtitles with either.

The story of Countdown to Heaven goes something like this: Conan and the Junior Detective Agency accompany Dr. Agasa on a camping trip then visit the grand opening of a "twin towers" style mega skyscraper in Tokyo on their way back home.
Richard Moore is also in attendance thanks to an invitation from his classmate Tokiwa Mio, who is the owner of the Tokiwa Corporation (which was heavily involved in the buildings' construction).

Once there a string of murders begin and the crew suspects a serial killer due to a broken sake' cup left at the scene of the crimes. Worse still is that clues hinting toward the return of the Black Organization abound.
Once Ms. Tokiwa Mio herself is killed in plain sight at the opening ceremony, the crew put the investigation into overdrive in effort to solve the bizarre string of events.

Aside from the longer runtime there are some notable differences between the film and the series. Among them is a reliance upon revealing pieces of pre-Conan life for Jimmy Kudo as threads with which to solve the mystery as well as mysteries that are themselves more complex (involving half a dozen key clues to solve rather than the one or two common of the series). Also Richard Moore is portrayed as being far-less dopey and actually contributes to the case's conclusion on multiple occasions; so dramatic is this change that the gimmick of Conan knocking Richard out via a tranquilizer dart then using his voice-changing bow-tie to reveal the solved case in the end is omitted entirely!

There also tends to be a greater focus on Conan's pal and fellow-age-reduced Anita Hailey (Vi in the English dub), Dr. Hershel Agasa and the gadgets he invented to aid Conan on his mission.

As is always the case (no pun intended) with this show, the artwork and visual style aren't extremely rich or polished. Instead the animation is fairly simplistic but gets the job done. Focusing on the show's beauty (or lack thereof) is truly missing the whole point of what makes Case Closed so special. This is suspense-driven story telling that goes the extra mile to make sure each motion picture provides sufficient resolve. I consider myself a competent wannabe detective, but failed to solve this one prior to Conan's unraveling of clues at the end!

The English dub is pure first-class Funimation all the way, which means it just nails the little language details that make the original mystery fun. I can only imagine the work, planning, and translating this must require to get right. The effort pays dividends though when you view the finished product and literally forget that this wasn't originally written in English. That said, this is an example of a film that offers great acting value in either language choice.

In all, quite an entertaining addition to a solid franchise but I wouldn't go as far as to call it the best of the films. In very un-Case Closed like fashion, the ending is quite "big budget Hollywood" for lack of a better term. Case Closed typically prides itself on intelligent writing to earn fans but and I suppose because of, this being a feature film, the staff can be forgiven for relying on an unrealistic but visually loaded ending. Good fun entertainment though, overall.

One of 14 case closed (detective conan) movies. IT IS SO AMAZING! I love it.
This movie is my second favorite case closed movie!
For any case closed fan, mystery fan, action fan, anime fan. There is love,
mystery, murder, action all in it.
"Gin and Vodka sneak into Akemi Miyano home and heard Shiho's message
that she would visit Tokiwa Twin Tower. Would Shiho got killed?"

Like previous Case Closed movies I have purchased, this one is enjoyable and fun to watch. I look forward to when I will be able to purchase more of this series as well as the Season 6. Anyone who enjoys watching the sleuthing abilities of Conan Edowaga (Jimmy Kudo) will appreciate this movie.

One of the best case closed movies out there and certainly my favorite, this action/mystery sees the return of the often behind-the-scenes Black Organization. I highly recomend this to all fans of Case Closed and Mystery films, even fans of Anime in general. There are bios of all the characters in the begining for those unfamiliar with the Case Closed series (also known as Detective Conan). All in all it is a very well made movie with a great climax. It may be hard to pick up or get into if you don't have any background on the series, but it is definately worth watching.

Have to say this is my favorite Case Closed movie yet. Made me gasp twice. Now if only they'd do more season sets...

"Meitantei Conan" or "Detective Conan" ("Case Closed" in the U.S.) has been one of the longest running manga and anime series in Japan. Written and illustrated by Gosho Aoyama and featured in Weekly Shonen Sunday since 1994, the anime series which started back in 1996 is well-nearing 600-episodes and 14 movies have been released in Japan.

FUNimation Entertainment have released several of the movies on DVD in Dec. 2009. "Cased Closed: Countdown to Heaven" is the ffifth "Meitantei Conan" film that was in theaters in Japan back in April 2001. The film was directed by Kenji Kodama (director for the "City Hunter" films, "Case Closed" TV series, "Tales of the Abyss", etc.) and a screenplay by Kazunari Kouchi (has written the screenplay for the TV series and all films). Character design is by Masaaki Sudoh (who worked on "Kekko Kamen" OAV and "Momotaro Densetsu") and music by Katsuo Ono ("Lupin III vs. Detective Conan" special and the "Detective Conan" TV series and films).

For those not familiar with "Case Closed", the TV series focuses on a popular high school detective named Jimmy Kudo (Shinichi Kudo). One day while going to an amusement park with his friend Rachel Moore (Ran Mohri), Jimmy saw two men, one man from the Black Organization suspiciously dealing something in the dark. Unbeknown to Jimmy, a man behind him had spotted him and hit him with a bat and forced him to ingest a poison capsule. Jimmy survived but the capsule somehow shrunk him to a child. If these thugs found out that Jimmy is still alive, they may hurt the people around him. So, his good friend Dr. Agasa (who helps Jimmy by building him gadgets which include a stun-gun wrist watch, voice changing bow-tie, solar powered skateboard and powerful shoes) suggested he wear a disguise. When Ran began asking who his name was, Jimmy replied Conan Edogawa.

So, in order to find out who the men are, he wound up living with Ran and her detective father, Richard Moore (Kogoro Mori). Only five people know Conan's true identity: Dr. Agasa, both of Jimmy's parents, Harley Hartwell (Hattori Heiji), popular detective from the high school in the west and Vye Graythorn (Shiho Miyano), a former member of the Black Organization who betrays the criminal group after the member Gin kills her older sister.

Together with some friends, Jimmy as Conan continues to take down criminals with his detective skills.

In the fifth movie, "Case Closed: Countdown to Heaven", features the grand opening of Towers in Tokyo. For some reason, Vye is behaving mysteriously and the Black Organization are now more intent in going after her and eliminating her but also intent in destroying the towers created by Tokiwa Corporation.

Meanwhile, several murders are happening for those who have a close connection to the towers and near each victim is a sake cup. The investigators plus Conan and the Junior Detective League investigate who may be the culprit not knowing that the Black Organization has set up bombs throughout the whole building. Can Conan and friends find out who the true murderer is and also escape the building in time?

VIDEO & AUDIO:

"Case Closed: Countdown to Heaven" is a film that came out back in April 2001. As the films move up each year, there is a noticeable difference in animation quality especially compared to the last four films. Animation is detailed and much more vibrant and even more detail and shading on the surrounding and background artwork.

Audio is presented in Dolby Digital 5.1 English and Japanese Stereo. English audio dialogue is clear from the center and music and sound effects are more front channel driven. Voice acting is well done for the English dub but for those who followed the Japanese series may get confused by the changing of the names. Japanese audio is well-done and for those who have a modern home theater receiver and a 5.1, 7.2 or higher setup, my preference was to have audio set on all channels for a more immersive soundscape.

Subtitles are in English.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

"Case Closed: Countdown in Heaven" comes with FUNimation Entertainment trailers only.

JUDGMENT CALL:

I grew up with "Meitantei Conan" and I own several Japanese manga volumes which helped me learn Japanese and have watched the original Japanese anime series including the Japanese drama. But I have never seen any of the animated films before, so it was a pleasure to see FUNimation Entertainment show their dedication in releasing the films in the US.

As for "Case Closed: Countdown in Heaven", what I enjoyed about this film is that we see the Black Organization once again but this time, they are really trying to cause some major death and destruction in this film. From the beginning of the series, we have seen how both Jimmy (Conan) and Vye have been hurt by this criminal organization and both must live their lives as the adults in the body of young children.

Although the story is not yet completed and is still ongoing in Japan, anytime we can see Conan pitted against Gin and the Black Organization makes an exciting film. Also, you get to see emotions come in to play as members of the Junior Detective start to like other members in the crew and although we know that Jimmy will always have his heart for Rachel, you get that sense that Vye may have something for Jimmy as well.

Similar to the previous films, one can enjoy this film without watching the TV series because the basics are introduced in the beginning of the film. From how Jimmy became Conan, who the Black Organization is, who the main and supporting characters are and also the gadgets that Conan and the Junior Detective use.

And like the previous films on DVD, there are no special features included but the FUNimation Entertainment trailers. I do wish that in future releases of films on DVD, the theatrical and teaser trailers and even the television commercials would be included.

Overall, "Case Closed: Countdown to Heaven" is another enjoyable, suspense and action heavy film and if you are curious about the series or characters, this release is perfect as an added addition to your "Case Closed" collection or as a stand-alone film.

I enjoyed this movie(not as much as I liked Captured In Her Eyes). The plot is okay, but there is alot of action to make up for it:)I felt the mystery was good, but when you discover who the killer is you get disappointed:( You get to see the Men in Black in action though:)