A talking animals movie from the director of The Minions does not sound like something that would be much good. A talking animals movie from the writer of Chernobyl and The Last of Us though sounds intriguing in an extremely bizarre kind of way. And yes, Craig Mazin has more than enough bad comedies to his name from before he made a wild tonal shift in his career, but there’s a weight he carries now and a maturity as a writer that means something. Even for as seemingly strange and trivial a project as this.
The Sheep Detectives, the live-action directing debut for Illumination’s Kyle Balda, is based on the popular German novel Three Bags Full by Leonie Swann -a mild murder mystery distinguished by the gimmick of its protagonists being a flock of sheep. A silly, one-note premise perhaps, but Mazin apparently found something soulful there amidst the goofy animal detective work. And against the odds he actually manages to translate that in his adaptation, which looks on the surface like Sony’s abysmal Peter Rabbit (and this is in fact a Sony production), but is really much closer to Babe.
Modestly moving the story’s setting from Ireland to the English countryside, the film follows the sheep on a meadow outside the village of Denbrook overseen by a widower shepherd George Hardy (Hugh Jackman), socially isolated and deeply dedicated to his flock. He is on bitter terms for various reasons with several people in town, which is why it raises suspicions when he suddenly turns up dead outside his caravan. Having been read murder mysteries for years by their beloved guardian, the sheep -led by Lily (voiced by Julia Louis-Dreyfus)- decide to use what they have learned to solve his murder, taking stock of a local cast of suspects and subtly aiding the dimwitted police officer Tim Derry (Nicholas Braun) in his investigation.
For the weirdness of its premise, the movie strikes an earnest tone far removed from the heightened infantile gags of Balda's other films. There's no irony imbued in George reading to his flock every night or the sheep's belief of becoming stars when they die or a dozen other little bits of quaintness that rather make up the fabric of the movie. There is silliness and slapstick to be found, but it is precisely and appropriately utilized. Much like the Paddington films in that respect, giving off an air of British charm and humility that is convincing as the movie perhaps not so subtly shows off great visual effects prowess.
The days of real animals in movies are no more, sadly or justifiably so depending on your persuasion. CGI artists have in the past decade struggled to render fake animals convincingly but are really starting to close that uncanny valley. We saw it with Krypto in Superman, aided by the use of a real animal double. And we see it in The Sheep Detectives assisted by elaborate puppets allowing the human actors to interact more convincingly with them. This hybrid approach appears to be a benefit for the cohesion of practical and digital elements, but it can’t be denied the animation itself has gotten a lot better. And perhaps sheep are a unique specimen for this technology visually and that this film -with a few points of exception- doesn’t put them in situations that are too extravagant. But however it is, the effects look good, and organic within the film’s vibrant pastoral visual character.
It is a style that is distinctly British -it follows the country murder mystery formula quite faithfully -which does make it a touch distracting that a few of the sheep speak in American accents. Lily of course, but also the brooding loner Sebastian, voiced by Bryan Cranston, and a clumsy sheep called Cloud voiced by Regina Hall. Even though this voice cast also includes the Irish Chris O’Dowd and the New Zealander Rhys Darby (alongside Bella Ramsey, Brett Goldstein, and Patrick Stewart as the posh elder of the flock), the Americans stand out so much more prominently it does take a while to fully get used to them and the film might have been better off with casting more consistent to the tone. However, Louis-Dreyfus and Cranston do well -as does O’Dowd- especially where more emotional material rears its head. And perhaps seeing the struggle of Braun to maintain a British accent, you can be thankful at least the sheep actors weren’t directed that way.
Braun is something of a weakness for this, the accent reflecting an inauthentic tenor to a lot of his performance, outside of maybe a few physical comedy bits. He is the human audience surrogate for much of the film so it is a hard thing to ignore. Molly Gordon, by virtue of playing an American, doesn't have the same problem though. She does a fine job as one of the suspects, George's long-lost daughter, alongside Hong Chau as an innkeeper, Nicholas Galitzine as a journalist, Tosin Cole as a rival less ethical shepherd, Conleth Hill as a butcher, and Kobna Holdbrook-Smith as a priest. A typically charming and witty Emma Thompson also turns up as George's lawyer -a key figure in the most rambunctious slapstick sequence of the movie.
It's a beat that stands out though less for its cleverness or silliness and more for its rarity. The comic material regarding these sheep is surprisingly reigned in a lot of the time and in its place is something surprisingly deep and a little bit tragic. Outside of their penchant for mystery stories, the sheep are defined by a few core attributes. They adhere to a tradition of shunning 'winter lambs' -a prejudice that extends even to an impossibly cute little one George had a particular fondness for, they share a steadfast belief that they turn into stars at death, and they have the ability when confronted with something troubling or distressing to erase their own memories rendering them in a state of perpetual contented ignorance. In the course of this mystery, all of these are challenged with a seriousness and severity that truly fits the tenor of Mazin's oeuvre. This movie about talking sheep addresses with maturity but a steady hand the weight of comprehending and carrying loss, the necessity of grief, the psychological ramifications of ostracization, and even hints towards the manifest virtues of mere existence. There are a couple instances of darkness in mood and theme here, and one development that I haven't seen a kids’ movie genuinely commit to in years. These are not adult edges to the film discordantly thrown in there, but pillars of the kind of thematic heft family movies (especially from those golden eras of Disney) used to carry. It is refreshing to see them again.
While these sheep eventually cross the road, The Sheep Detectives never strays too far even in its moments of heaviness- from the humble charm of its world and premise. In a way it deserves some credit for being exactly as advertised and wringing out of its apparent simplicity just the kind of earnest though substantive whimsy we've been missing from family movies. Some of its casting doesn't quite work and the mystery itself isn't strikingly constructed, but its warmth of spirit and heart and its worthy conviction carries it far. Flock to it.
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