While not particularly engaging or thrilling compared to other detective movies, Detective Conan – Quarter of Silence does have its moments. And it is these moments which edge it above mediocrity and Detective Conan’s usual formulaic plots.
A threat letter is sent to the governor of Tokyo and while Conan stops the subsequent assassination attempt on the governor’s life, the assassin manages to escape. While investigating the mystery assassin, Conan finds himself in the middle of a snowy mountain village, together with Kogoro, Ran, Sonoko, Professor Agasa and the Detective Boys. There, they encounter Touma Tachihara, a youth who has just awoken from an eight-year coma after a mysterious accident. Soon, Conan realises that both the assassin and the mystery accident eight years ago are linked and Touma’s missing memories are the key to solving the mystery.
With this particular movie being the 15th film instalment as well as the 15th anniversary of the anime, the title of this particular movie, “Quarter of Silence”, is certainly appropriate (Though it is more likely a marketing decision as opposed to a creative one.) “Quarter of Silence” is also associated with the fact that the first 15 minutes is crucial to a person’s survival when trapped in an avalanche, as studies show that the survival rate falls from 92 per cent in the first 15 minutes to 30 per cent should he be trapped 30 minutes or more (Three cheers for Wikipedia!).
With the above statistic being surreptitiously mentioned throughout parts of the movie, combined with the movie being set in a snowy mountain village, it does not take a genius to figure out what the climactic scene would be (Spoiler: Yes, it involves an avalanche with someone trapped in the snow…). Even so, viewers should not let that fact take anything away from the movie. The high production values (for Detective Conan anyway…) and a decent amount of action scenes (and yes, the climactic action scene was pretty exciting too…) should capture the attention of most of the audience, if not put them at the edge of their seats.
Plots from the Detective Conan series are unfortunately formulaic, and the “tricks” which the antagonist(s) (or protagonists for that matter) employs are, while plausible, seem somewhat unrealistic. While this movie follows the typical Conan formula, less “tricks” are involved and the focus is more on the mystery itself, which gives a slightly more realistic feel to the movie. The actual execution though, is slightly off the mark. The movie’s plot involves Conan actually catching a (albeit an unclear one) glimpse of the perpetrator and this is where it slips up a little. Anyone who has read the manga or watched an episode of the series will know that the “villain” in each Conan story will be “shrouded” in black, hiding in the shadows while planning/executing his or her plan. Thus, I find it rather unrealistic that despite Conan catching “a glimpse” of the perpetrator early on, he is unable to identify ANY of the characteristics about the person, be it clothes, gender, etc. (Being a casual follower of the Detective Conan series, I am not sure if there are any other instances of this happening…)
Still, the plot does tie up most, if not all of the loose ends and gives us a decent ending for all involved. Fans of the usual ships in the series do get their moments as well, with the prerequisite “Ran calling Shinichi on the mobile as Conan struggles to find a quiet place to answer her call” scene, and also the occasional Conan-Ai (my favourite ship) action sequence. Admittedly, I am unable to compare it with other Detective Conan movies as this is the first one which I have watched in full. Nonetheless, a good mix of exciting action and sleuthing sequences, combined with good production values and a decent plot, makes Quarter of Silence a decent watch for anime fans, and a very good one for fans of the series.
Rating: 7.0/10
Tags: Anime, Detective Conan, JPLEX, Movie
