Don’t Sleep on The Sheep Detectives

This whimsical tale is more profound than it appears

Credit: Amazon MGM Studios

Any casual moviegoer would be forgiven for dismissing The Sheep Detectives as a wacky comedy with talking sheep. The trailer caught my attention with Hugh Jackman reading stories to sheep. It’s been on my radar to see it on the big screen, but life got in the way. Luckily, Flix Brewhouse brought it back for a short run. I caught it before it dropped on Amazon Prime and fell in love with it. I’ll keep this as spoiler-free as possible. The film was adapted from the 2005 novel Three Bags Full by Leonie Swann.

Hugh Jackman’s George Hardy reads murder mysteries to his flock, and they adore him. Each sheep has a distinctive voice and personality provided by the likes of Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Bryan Cranston, and Chris O’Dowd, to name a few. The idyllic English village setting of Denbrook provides a fantastic backdrop for the mayhem that’s about to ensue. Louis-Dreyfus voices Lily, the heart of the herd.

I can’t discuss the plot without revealing the inciting incident that’s in the trailer. The flocks’ lives are thrown into chaos when they discover George’s body outside his trailer. Up until that point, death didn’t exist to them. As far as they are concerned, they turn into clouds at the end of their lives. Their journey from blissful ignorance to acceptance of life’s hard truths is what makes this movie so memorable.

George’s death becomes a classic whodunit with an outstanding cast of human suspects. I love how it takes that trope and turns it into something unique. Agatha Christie would have approved. Nicholas Braun’s Tim Derry, Denbrook’s only police officer, dismisses the death as a heart attack. Nicholas Galitzine’s reporter, Elliot Matthews, suspects there’s more to it than that and pushes him to deepen his investigation. The sheep aren’t satisfied with Tim’s efforts and take it upon themselves to solve the murder. As the story progresses, Tim becomes more competent, which makes for a believable character arc.

I can’t say too much more without wandering into spoiler territory. The human cast keeps a story involving talking sheep as grounded as possible. Emma Thompson turns in a believable performance as George’s attorney, Lydia Harbottle. Molly Gordon gives a very strong performance as George’s daughter Rebecca. She’d just reconnected with George, and her grief feels very palpable. As a bereaved daughter myself, my eyes welled up near the end. I didn’t expect that to happen. That’s when you know you’ve found something special that stays with you long after the credits roll.

The film may have struggled at the box office, but don’t judge it based on that. Some of the best movies ever flopped upon release. Here’s looking at you The Thing, The Big Lebowski, Donnie Darko. Maybe the CGI sheep turned some people off. I’m all for practical effects, but it works for this story. It’s been a streaming hit for Amazon Prime, but I wish it could have made a bigger impact at the box office. Kudos to director Kyle Balda for turning out such an engaging story. It was well received by critics and I’ve yet to come across a bad review. So go see it armed with a box of tissues. You’ll never look at clouds the same way again.