The Sheep Detectives
★ ★ ★ ★
The Sheep Detectives is a cute film about an English countryside sheep farmer named George Hardy (Hugh Jackman) who lives in a trailer on his farm. George is better with animals than people. His relationships with people in town are, at best, barely polite. Mostly, he’s a recluse on his farm. His only positive relationship is with his estranged daughter, and he communicates with her solely by post.
It’s a film about grief and loss, with themes of community, justice and morality. The story weaves everything together seamlessly, even if it significantly deviates from the plot of Three Bags Full by Leonie Swann, the novel upon which it’s based.
Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Lily (voice) and Hugh Jackman as George Hardy
© 2026 Amazon MGM Studios
George’s sheep talk to each other, but only we, the audience, understand them. They have their own little community and hold meetings about what’s going on with George and the occasional farm visitor. George reads mystery novels to them every night before sunset. The sheep gather near his trailer’s porch and listen to the stories. They let out an occasional “baa” at exciting parts.
When a murder takes place on George’s farm, the sheep take it upon themselves to solve the crime. Lily (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) has paid the most attention to George’s mysteries and leads the investigation. We learn a lot about George’s flock. They tip over when they’re scared. The local butcher falls asleep as he counts how many of them there are in the meadow. And they care deeply about George.
Nicholas Braun as Officer Tim Derry
© 2026 Amazon MGM Studios
It’s more than a fun mystery, and to dismiss this as a “kids’ movie” would be to overlook the strong thematic elements in the story. It deals with tragedy in a lighthearted way while remaining true to its themes. The sheep have a need for justice, both within their own ranks and in their need to solve the murder.
That said, they’re not without their own flaws. Sheep born in winter are generally outcasts. While it’s not fully explained why, it’s well understood that this has been their way. The Winter Lamb (Tommy Birchall) is a tiny young lamb with perhaps the sweetest animal voice since Christine Cavanaugh voiced the title character, a young piglet, in 1995’s Babe. He’s an outcast, living on the fringes of the farm. The only real kindness he gets is from George.
Molly Gordon as Rebecca Hampstead
© 2026 Amazon MGM Studios
There are a lot of life lessons woven throughout this story. Despite this, the film never feels preachy or overbearing. To the film’s credit, we’re allowed to make of it what we will.
The sheep come to life in a seamless blend of photorealistic CGI, 360-degree scans of actual sheep and masterful puppetry. It’s easy to forget you’re not watching real animals. Even when they’re talking, they look incredibly real.
The Sheep Detectives is a beautifully made little mystery, full of warmth, wit and surprising moral weight. One more takeaway from the film: if you’re driving by a farm of sheep in the countryside, resist the urge to count them, especially if you’re behind the wheel. The last thing anyone needs is a DWCS, or driving while counting sheep.
