The Sheep Detectives

When Shepherd George dies under mysterious circumstances, his flock of sheep decide to solve the crime themselves, even if that means leaving their meadow and venturing out into the big scary world…

Based on the 2005 novel Three Bags Full by Leonie Swann, The Sheep Detectives was directed by Kyle Balda, who directed Minions, Despicable Me 3, and Minions: The Rise of Gru, with a screenplay by Craig Mazin, who is best known for writing the tv series Chernobyl and The Last Of Us.

That's some strange worlds intersecting there, and in a very odd project…

Obviously, the idea of a bunch of sheep solving a murder in the real world is a bit unusual, sure, but okay. With Craig Mazin writing, I’m interested, so let’s check it out. Still, I wasn't sure what kind of tone to expect.

In the quaint little English village of Denbrook, there lives a shepherd named George Hardy. George spends his days reading murder mystery novels to his flock of sheep. There’s Lily, the smartest sheep, who loves murder mysteries. Mopple, the ram who is unable to forget. Sebastian, a loner ram who George rescued from a carnival. Cloud, the prettiest ewe. Sir Richfield, the oldest, proudest, and fluffiest ram. Zora, a young ewe with a thousand questions. Wool-Eyes, a ram who always has wool hanging in his eyes. Ronnie and Reggie, rowdy twin rams who like to ram into things. Daisy, Ollie, and Pickles, the three young sheep. And of course, there’s the orphan, and the flock outcast, the Winter Lamb.

The sheep exist in blissful ignorance, believing death to be nothing more than a fictional concept found in murder mysteries, as it is well known that sheep turn into clouds at the end of their lives. Nothing bothers them, because whenever the flock is faced with an uncomfortable reality, they simply will themselves to forget, and then go on with their happy and content existence. The only thing they hate are lambs that were born in winter, rather than the typical springtime.

But then one morning, George is discovered dead outside his trailer.

In town to cover the local fair, reporter Elliot Matthews believes that George was murdered, and encourages Tim Derry, the town's only police officer, to investigate. Tim concludes that George was poisoned. Witnessing all of this from the meadow surrounding the crime scene, the sheep decide to solve the mystery on their own.

In order to do this, Lily and Moppet manage to work up the courage to not only leave the meadow, but cross a road, AND head into the village. There, they watch from the window during the reading of George's will, which is attended by Elliot, Tim, George's solicitor Lydia Harbottle, Reverend Hillcoate, butcher Ham Gilyard, innkeeper Beth Pennock, and neighbouring shepherd Caleb Merrow. The sheep also learn George had a twin son and daughter—both of whom were sent away for adoption after their mother died in childbirth—when George’s daughter, Rebecca Hampstead, arrives from America. Lydia kicks Elliot out of the room, as he is not included in the will, before she then calls George's son, Peter Van Vuuren, in South Africa, where he lives, so that he can attend the reading remotely.

That’s when everyone learns that George was secretly a millionaire, as he had recently sold the patent for a sheep medicine he had invented. Also, he has a new will, and that new will awards his fortune to Rebecca, replacing an old will which donated everything he owned to an animal rights charity.

In short… Everyone is a suspect. Especially Rebecca.

I won’t spoil the mystery, of course.

But I will say that it’s fairly easy to figure out, almost immediately in fact, and that’s fine because while the mystery is fun, it’s not really the point of the story. Still, it’s a lot of fun, pure entertainment, and the cuteness abounds in this very classic Agatha Christie style cozy murder mystery, where the major difference is that this time, the detectives are sheep.

Honestly, it’s a delight.

Also, a shocking thing to realize… Nicholas Galitzine, who plays Elliot Matthews, the reporter, also plays He-Man in the recent Masters of the Universe movie. I would not have made that connection just be watching these films, so good on Nicholas, turning in a pair of very fine and very different performances.

On top of He-Man himself, as is the tradition with movies like this, there are a ton of famous names involved… Hugh Jackman, Nicholas Braun, Molly Gordon, Hong Chau, and Emma Thompson, along with voices from Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Bryan Cranston, Regina Hall, Chris O'Dowd, Patrick Stewart, Bella Ramsey, Rhys Darby, Brett Goldstein, and Laraine Newman. Honestly, I'm shocked at how long all these famous people stayed on all fours while wearing their sheep costumes.

I'm just kidding, that's not what they do here.

At this point in my life and interests, I am generally unimpressed, or at least unconcerned with, CGI special effects, and only really care if they’re intrusive. It’s like fireworks… I just don’t give a shit anymore. But that said, the effects are great in this film. As close to invisible as they can be, mostly in the way the sheep seem to actually be a part of the world that they’re interacting with. They all have a very believable weight to them. It’s the kind of work where you can easily forget that these talking sheep aren’t real.

This is great, because then you can just sit back and enjoy the cute and funny fun. And it is fun. I love how the sheep are so innocent and naive and yet so confident in their knowledge of the world, with zero idea of how little they know. I also loved the joke of Ham Gilyard, the butcher, excitedly counting George’s flock of sheep for a potential purchase, only to fall asleep while doing it. That's a top notch joke. And the reference to Return to Oz, a film that scarred an entire generation, is great too. Apparently, the town’s claim to fame is that it is located forty miles away from one of that film’s shooting location, and as a result, most of the town agrees, it's the best film ever made, and even better than the original, so I enjoyed that random and funny quirk too.

Best of all, amongst all the adorable fun, The Sheep Detectives has some really good messages too, messages that are very relevant to our modern world. The film talks about the necessity of confronting painful realities, about the nature of grief, about how choosing to remain ignorant is harmful, and that truth is essential not just for justice and for wisdom, but in order to live a meaningful life. The film also talks about the importance of embracing inclusivity, reminding us all of the value of caring for each other, as well as those who are different, and of the strength that comes from community.

It's really good stuff.

Whimsical and innovative and surprisingly poignant, The Sheep Detectives is one of the best family films in years. Genuinely all ages, despite some darker elements, this is the kind of film that adults and children alike will enjoy, without feeling like they’re being talked down to, or that they are being hammered with idiot noise. It’s funny and fun and silly and smart and self-aware. An all-around good movie.

Highly recommended. Definitely worth the watch.