Case Closed: The Time Bombed Skyscraper

Detective Conan: The Time-Bombed Skyscraper
File:1st movie.jpg
Directed by	Kanetsugu Kodama
Written by	Kazunari Kochi
Produced by	Michihiko Suwa
Music by	Katsuo Ono
Distributed by	Toho
Release date	April 14 1997
Running time	95 minutes
Country	Japan
Language	Japanese

Detective Conan: The Time-Bombed Skyscraper (名探偵コナン　時計じかけの摩天楼) is a 1997 Japanese animated film based on the Case Closed manga series, featuring detective Jimmy Kudo.

Plot

Prologue

The movie opens with Mouri Kogoro, Edogawa Conan and Mouri Ran at the home of a murdered man. The victim, Dr. Kurokawa, had been drinking alcohol and using his computer when he was struck from behind with a bronze statue. However, Inspector Megure doesn't understand what seems to be the victim's dying message: the letters JUN typed onto the computer. (In the Japanese version, the victim knew English, in the American version, it was reversed.) After Mouri goes through another of his poorly thought out deductions, Conan goes through the usual routine of putting Richard to sleep and using his bowtie voice-changer to solve the case. The murderer turns out to be the maid, after Conan reasons out that the victim typed JUN onto the computer, thinking that he was actually typing in Japanese. The letters correspond to make the maid's name. Also, when the maid walked into the room to commit the murder, she took her slippers off so she wouldn't make any noise. She didn't notice that she had accidentally stepped in some blood, which stained her socks. The maid admitted she committed the crime, and said that she was after revenge for what the victim did to her family years prior.

Afterwards, Conan tells the audience the story thus far; how he is really Kudo Shinichi, and that he's been shrunk down to size by the Apotoxin. He then gives a quick explanation of his gadgets, after which the opening credits end and the movie proper begins.

Invitation

Conan is at Dr. Agasa's home and lamenting on not being any closer to exposing the men in black who shrunk him. Agasa tries to sympathize with his friend while also showing off his newest creation, a replica of an insect, which he hopes to make millions off of. Conan searches through his mail, which has been rerouted to Agasa's home in his absence, and finds a letter addressed specifically to Kudo Shinichi. The letter is from a famous builder named Moriya Teiji who wishes to invite Shinichi to a garden party.

Of course, in his present condition, Conan can't go, so he contacts Ran using his voice-changing bowtie as Shinichi and asks her to go in his place. Ran agrees, on the condition that Shinichi goes to the movie with her on Saturday; she hangs up before Shinichi can properly turn her down. Conan heads home wondering why Ran was so insistent about the date (the only thing he can think of, is the fact that Holmes and Professor Moriarty had fallen off the Reichenbach Falls on that day) and runs into Inspector Megure. Conan gets introduced to Shiratori, who's new on the team, but when he asks what the situation is and is told off, as it's a problem for adults.

Back home, Ran tells her father of the garden party and that Shinichi asked for them to go in his stead. She then tells of her movie-date with Jimmy and how it will be his birthday, she explains the movie she wishes to see with him is about two lovers connected by a red string of destiny. She also said that she planned on surprising Shinichi with a red polo shirt she bought for him, because Shinichi had said earlier that he like red better than blue, and that since both Ran and Shinichi are born in the month of May, and the lucky color of May is red. Conan is shocked that he nearly forgot his own birthday, and tries to formulate an escape plan from this date.

The next day the gang heads for the party, and are in awe of the man's beautiful home. Kogoro pretends to know alot about the architecture of the house, but Conan spots his little handbook of facts. Apparently, the house is built so both sides are exactly the same (symmetric). At the party, the host holds is a little upset by Shinichi's absence, but feels that Kogoro will be a fitting guest of honor. Conan notices that there are alot of famous people at the party.

Moriya Teiji, the host, then goes on a rant on how young architects should be held responsible for their art, because the newer architects just aren't participating up to par. He then holds a small contest involving the profiles of three different men and asks his guests to find out the one similarity between them. Conan solves the puzzle, much to Kogoro's dismay, and Ran and he are granted a small tour of the man's gallery, where portraits of his previous architectural works are displayed.

Ran and Conan are amazed by the man's prestigious works. Conan notices that one of the houses displayed is the house of victim in the opening sequence. Moriya Teiji informs Conan and Ran that all the works on the wall they were looking at were built in his 30s. Conan thinks it's cool that the man even built bridges, since everything is symmetrical.

The architect asks Ran whether she and Shinichi were close, and Ran says yes. She tells Moriya Teiji that she was planning to have a movie-date with Shinichi on his birthday at the Beika City Building, which was also designed by the architect. She tells him that she was going to get Shinichi a red polo shirt, because red is the lucky color for both Ran and Shinichi. Conan is now very worried about what to do on Saturday.

Moving Bombs

The following day, Jimmy is at Dr. Agasa's house and contemplating his plan to elude Rachel. Suddenly a news bulletin appears and mentions that a cache of explosives were stolen the previous night, and that a house has been burnt down. Jimmy recognizes it as one of the works of the Architect from garden party. Suddenly the phone rings and the caller requests for Shinichi personally. Shinichi is told that bombs will go off in different areas unless Shinichi agrees to play a game. Shinichi accepts, and the mysterious caller tells him to go to a certain park, where he'll be shown something interesting.

Racing off to the park, Conan finds the Detective Boys playing with a toy airplane, which was given to them by a stranger. Conan realizes that the bombs are on the plane and tries to take the controls from the kids, but breaks them in the ensuing confusion. Using the controller as projectile, Conan kicks it at the plane which blows up in a fiery explosion.

After checking that none of the kids are hurt, Conan is called up once more by the bomber, who demands to know where Shinichi is. Conan realizes that the caller can see him from on top of a building nearby. Trying to not blow his cover, Conan says he will take Shinichi's place and is clued into the next bomb's whereabouts. He's told that another bomb will explode at precisely one o'clock and is located near Beika Station. Conan asks for another hint, since he's only a kid, and the caller says that it's located under a tree. He's also told to be quick, or else someone might just walk off with it.

Heading out on his solar powered skateboard, Conan arrives at the destination, but is unable to find the bomb. Upon entering a restaurant, he spies an elderly woman finding a kitten in a box under the bench. Realizing the bomb must be in the carrier for the cat, Conan heads back into the street and nearly is run over by cars. Upon attempt to chase down the old lady, now in a cab, Conan discovers his board was broken from the near collision. He steals a kids bike and gives chase, taking a short cut, Conan is able to acquisition the carrier, and proceeds to find a safe zone to dispose of the bomb.

Along the road, Conan is perplexed when the bomb momentarily pauses as he passes a park and starts up moments after going by it. He attempts to throw the bomb into a river, but crashes the bike down the steep hill. The bomb explodes on the foot of the hill and sends Conan into a tree, injuring him, but otherwise not destroying any lives or buildings in the process.

Bomb in Railway

Conan awakes in the hospital with the kids and Inspector Megure commenting on his bravery. Megure asks how Conan was drawn into the madman's bombing and is told that Shinichi was contacted but thought Conan could handle it. Richard is frustrated by Kudo's ignorant behavior but calms when he and Megure focus on determining the bomber's motive. The realize that the explosives on the plane were the same as the explosives stolen last night.

The Inspectors Megure and Shiratori think that the culprit may have some sort of grudge against Kudo Shinichi, but Shiratori says that everyone Kudo's caught is currently still in jail. The Detective Boys give Conan a picture they drew of the stranger who gave them the rigged plane, but Conan doesn't have any idea of who it may be. Ayumi says that she noticed a sweet smell around the stranger, but couldn't really identify it. Dr Agasa asks which of Shinichi's cases had produced the most attention in the media.

A flashback reveals that Shinichi once revealed a man running for mayor was involved in the vehicular death of a woman, and his son was willing to take the blame. Megure tells Shiratori to look into the case and find any possible connections. Meanwhile, the bomber contacts Conan, and Kogoro decides to take up the job now. The bomber claims that after four o'clock, if the trains go under 60 mph, then they will blow up. However, if the bombs are not found and disarmed by sunset, they will also blow up. The bomber gives only one clue: The bombs are planted at the Touto Circular Railway's 'X of the XX'. (Replace each of the X's with one Kanji)

It becomes a frantic search to determine the riddle of the bombs locations and insure the safety of the trains. Conan eventually figures the bombs are on the tracks themselves and that if the trains ran too slow, the solar sensor on the bombs would detonate. The bomb-squads are able to sniff out the bombs and Conan meanwhile comes to the conclusion that the Architect is involved in the bombings, since most of the bombs are located around the bridge that the architect had built.

Bomb on Skyscraper

Megure, Kogoro and Conan confront the man, who pleads innocence. Shiratori reveals some questionable evidence of the man's past concerning his parents. However, Conan smells a sweet smell around the Architect, which sparks Conan to investigate the gallery, but not before doing some snooping in the man's study. Conan finds a diorama of beautiful city plan, and notices the perfect symmetry. Conan then recalls that all of the architects' previous works are asymmetrical, and how the man also admitted to having disdain for such style. He calls Megure using Shinichi's voice (using the bowtie) and claimed to have solved the case. He requested that everyone meet in the gallery.

It is there, that Conan (Using the bowtie to replicate his Jimmy voice) reveals the architect as the bomber, and that it was an elaborate plan to destroy his 'inferior' works and create a perfect new structure. The man, alarmed, is about to destroy his own home with a lighter-shaped detonator but Shinichi says he has removed the batteries. Just as Megure is ready to make an arrest, the architect reveals his biggest bombing yet, the tower (Beika City Building) he built is rigged to explode in various parts and by midnight will be in rubble.

Kogoro is furious as he remembers Ran to be at that very place for the movie. The architect is uncaring and declares that Shinichi has only a few precious minutes to save Rachel and the rest at the skyscrapper. Conan runs off 'to tell Shinichi-niichan' but the Architect says to tell Kudo that "he made three minutes just for him."

The bomb blows as Ran is waiting inside, and she and other citizens are trapped inside the building. Conan attempts to run to her as the building continues to crumble, but cannot get past the final door which has been warped in the explosion. He uses his cell phone and calls the phone inside the room where Ran is trapped (using the bowtie) and confirms that she and everyone else is okay. He tells her to look for anything strange or out-of-place, and she finds a bag with a timer in it.

Shinichi tells Ran to be careful, because that's the bomb. He tells her to use a pair of scissors to cut the wires he tells her to cut to disarm the bomb, because the rescue crew won't get there fast enough. She says that she can't concentrate while on the phone, so she brings the bomb over to the other side of the warped door so that Shinichi could yell out instructions to her.

Shinichi carefully guides Ran through the entire bomb, but finds that the Architect had made two extra wires, one red, one blue. Shinichi has no idea which wire to cut, but he knows that one of them is booby-trapped. He also realizes that the timer is set to go off three minutes after midnight, and when the Architect had said that he had made three minutes just for him, he meant for Shinichi to enjoy his last birthday (May 4).

Ran wishes Shinichi a happy birthday, and Shinichi tells Ran to cut her favorite color wire, the red one. Ran, however, is undecided, and waits until the last few minutes. Just then, the rescue team arrives and finds Conan, and they carry him away just as Shinichi realizes that the Architect knew that Ran's favorite color was red, so he would have booby-trapped the red wire. He's horrified because he knows that he had told Ran to cut the red wire, and he shouts for her to cut the blue one, but she can't hear him.

Ran makes a desperate decision and cuts a wire. The timer stops, and it turns out she had cut the blue wire because cutting the red wire would have been like cutting the link between her and Shinichi (like in the movie they were going to watch.)

The bomber is defeated and Kogoro is joyfully teary eyed over the safe rescue of his daughter. Ran searches for Shinichi, but only finds Conan, who says Shinichi has once more escaped confrontation with her. Ran is upset, but glad that Shinichi had at least been with her during the bomb scare.

The film then ends with a recap of the films events. (Note: This only occurs in the original Japanese version, the American version is a still of the aftermath and nothing else.)

External links

• IMDB listing