Detective extraordinaire Conan Edogawa returns to the big screen for what is the twenty-ninth, and third released in the UK, feature-length-film within the Detective Conan franchise. Introducing Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway; It’s not quite fast, nor is it quite furious, but it certainly is a classic case of whodunit on a cinematic scale that everyone can enjoy.
Clocking in at less than two hours Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway offers a story from multiple perspectives, with a focus on the Kanagawa Traffic Police officer Chihaya Hagiwara, that intertwine with each other to deliver a bigger mystery that could have ended at the 80-minute mark. Ironically this also isn’t the first time that Chihaya has made an appearance in Detective Conan, or a related spin-off, but for most of us it may as well be.
Ⓒ 2026 GA/DCC, Courtesy of Trinity CineAsia
Which is why, just like the films before it, Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway offers a quick recap of who Conan Edogawa is, who his friends are, and brief backgrounds of the main cast of characters that will be featured within the film shortly after it begins and as part of the opening title sequence. This means that everyone, including newcomers such as myself, will have a basic understanding of the characters in this film and can enjoy it for what it is; a stand-a-lone film within the Detective Conan franchise. But alas, I may be getting slightly ahead of myself, and be warned spoilers are ahead.
***WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD***
Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway follows the story of Conan Edogawa as he (rather secretly) works with Kogoro Mouri and Chihaya Hagiwara to solve the mystery of a mysterious black motorcycle, nicknamed Lucifer, that is causing havoc around Japan. During this investigation Conan discovers connections with an underground group, motorcycle accidents, and a grieving traffic officer that ultimately lead him and Chihiya to the culprit of this mystery.
Ⓒ 2026 GA/DCC, Courtesy of Trinity CineAsia
The mystery begins when Conan’s friends, namely Ai, Ayumi, Genta, Mitsuhiko and Professor Agasa, witness a headless rider on a black motorcycle while out stargazing in the mountains. The next day, this same black motorcycle overtakes Conan, Sera, Ran and Kogoro on the motorway, and we see that it is being chased by the “Goddess of the Wind” Chihaya Hagiwara, while on their way to a Motorcycle Festival. The disruption caused by the mysterious black motorcycle, and the appearance of Chihaya, causes Conan to start investigating at the festival once he learns of a semi-autonomous motorcycle, known as Angel, that is being produced by the engineer Kazuaki Omae and tested by Chihaya.
It’s here where the film starts to divide and conqueror with its progression of the story. We have Conan that helps drive the story forward with his investigative skills and childlike antics, and then we have Chihaya who adds a bit of weight to the story with her reminiscing about her brother and a former colleague that was injured during a motorcycle chase. There is also Sera who has her own story of investigating motorcycle groups and talking with engineers in order to find her missing friend. When I was watching the film both Chihaya’s and Sera’s storylines felt like deviations from the main story of the movie, but evidently they actually help further enforce it.
Ⓒ 2026 GA/DCC, Courtesy of Trinity CineAsia
For instance, Sera’s investigation into her missing friend leads her to the underground motorcycle group, a group which coincidentally has a connection with the black motorcycle. The motorcycle accidents that Conan and Chihya had been investigating also tie back to this same group, a truth that this particular group wants to keep quiet and by any means necessary. As the investigation heats up, so do the stakes for Conan and his friends, and the second half of the film is a mixture of reveals, conflicts, rescue attempts, and cinematic motorcycle chases with the odd SPEED reference (and yes, i’m talking about the 1994 film SPEED) thrown in.
Realistically by the seventy minute mark of the film the mysteries surrounding the black motorcyclist and the underground racing group have been revealed, and you get the sense the film is ready to end. Fortunately (or perhaps unfortunately) that doesn’t happen. Instead we get one final cinematic clash between Police and all those involved, and it’s here where the SPEED references I was mentioned earlier come in to play. At this point in the film another group, who viewers may have spotted lurking in the shadows, also join the party to bring their agenda to the main screen; which is revenge against the mastermind of the whole scenario.
Ⓒ 2026 GA/DCC, Courtesy of Trinity CineAsia
As a film Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway does exactly what it sets out to do, by bringing Conan and his friends to the bring screen in a cinematic way with a stand-a-lone story. But alas, I wasn’t entertained by the story offered and I found myself losing interest by the hour mark. By the time the mystery had been solved on screen, which is easy to solve yourself early on if you are paying attention to the clues, my mind had already clocked out on the film.
Not even the motorcycle chase sequences that followed could ignite my interest, and the last twenty minutes for me were a bit a blur. That being said the finale was climatic, with motorcycle chases, a helicopter pursuit, and further dramatic reveals detailing how everyone in the film was connected in some form.
Ⓒ 2026 GA/DCC, Courtesy of Trinity CineAsia
Am I suggesting that Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway is a bad film? Not at all, I am merely saying that this particular story wasn’t for me, and that the runtime for the film was probably too long for the story that it was trying to tell. Which is a shame. The film initially had me hooked, but as time ticked on I began losing interest. I guess I did not find the progression of the story, or the characters involved, interesting enough and the story just carried on regardless.
I do know that the diverging story lines, and portions that I thought served little purpose other than character development (like the flashbacks to Chihiya’s brother or motocycle accident), effected my enthusiasm for the events of the film as they felt more like a distraction rather than world building. But ultimately these did serve a purpose of further refining that character on screen.
Ⓒ 2026 GA/DCC, Courtesy of Trinity CineAsia
The previous film, Detective Conan: One-Eyed Flashback, had me invested in the story and its characters, and I wanted to keep watching to find out more, but it wasn’t the case with this film. It’s not like I wanted the film to end either, I just wanted something more interesting or exciting to happen during the course of it.
It’s also safe to say that this is a Chihaya Hagiwara, or a Wild Police Story, film rather than a Detective Conan film, as it felt that Conan was in a supportive role with Chihaya acting as the lead due to the ties with her brother and former colleague. Even Conan’s friends rarely get any screen time other than as witnesses to the black motorcyclist.
Ⓒ 2026 GA/DCC, Courtesy of Trinity CineAsia
In short; Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway is a film that brings a large scale adventure to the big screen featuring all the notable characters from the series. The animation style, the music, and the question of “whodunnit?” are exactly what you’d expect to receive from a Detective Conan product. and once again it is a self contained story that everyone can enjoy.
As reminder you can watch this without any prior knowledge of Detective Conan and still have a fun experience. If you get the opportunity to watch the film on the big screen, then it’s worth giving it a go, but DO REMEMBER to stay until the very end for an additional scene and a tease of what’s to come next.
Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway is now available in cinemas across the UK and is being screened in Japanese with English (and Chinese) subtitles. Cinema and ticket availability can also be found through Trinity CineAsia UK’s official website.
Thank you to Trinity CineAsia for providing us with a digital screener of the film.
