{"id":2406375,"date":"2026-05-07T17:58:06","date_gmt":"2026-05-07T17:58:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/?p=2406375"},"modified":"2026-05-07T17:58:06","modified_gmt":"2026-05-07T17:58:06","slug":"the-sheep-detectives-review-a-killer-is-on-the-lamb-in-cute-animal-mystery-movie","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/the-sheep-detectives-review-a-killer-is-on-the-lamb-in-cute-animal-mystery-movie\/","title":{"rendered":"&#8216;The Sheep Detectives&#8217; review: A killer is on the lamb in cute animal mystery movie"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content%2Fuploads%2Fsites%2F2%2F2026%2F05%2Fnewspress-collage-3jz3e03on-1778172802266.jpg?quality%3D90%26strip%3Dall%261778158528\" \/><\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"inline-module inline-module--review alignleft\">\n<div class=\"inline-module__inner\">\n\t\t<span class=\"inline-module--review__eyebrow subsection-heading-semi__label\"><br \/>\n\t\t\tmovie review\t\t<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"inline-module--review__title subsection-heading-semi\">\n\t\t\tTHE SHEEP DETECTIVES\t\t<\/h2>\n<div class=\"rating\">\n<div class=\"rating__stars\">\n<div class=\"rating__star rating__star--filled\"><?php \/**\n * Review star.\n * \n * @package nyp-editor\n *\/\n\n??><\/p>\n<style><![CDATA[\n\t.review-block-star {\n\t\t--review-block-star--empty-color: #585858;\n\t\t--review-block-star--fill-color: #000;\n\t}\n]]><\/style>\n<p><svg class=\"icon-star review-block-star\" stroke=\"var(--review-block-star--fill-color)\" fill=\"var(--review-block-star--empty-color)\" stroke-width=\"0\" viewbox=\"0 0 16 16\" height=\"13px\" width=\"13px\">\n\t<defs>\n\t\t<lineargradient id=\"half-gradient\">\n\t\t\t<stop stop-opacity=\"1\" offset=\"50%\" stop-color=\"var(--review-block-star--fill-color)\"\/>\n\t\t\t<stop stop-opacity=\"1\" offset=\"0%\" stop-color=\"var(--review-block-star--empty-color)\"\/>\n\t\t<\/lineargradient>\n\t<\/defs>\n\t<path d=\"M3.612 15.443c-.386.198-.824-.149-.746-.592l.83-4.73L.173 6.765c-.329-.314-.158-.888.283-.95l4.898-.696L7.538.792c.197-.39.73-.39.927 0l2.184 4.327 4.898.696c.441.062.612.636.283.95l-3.523 3.356.83 4.73c.078.443-.36.79-.746.592L8 13.187l-4.389 2.256z\">\n\t<\/path>\n<\/svg>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"rating__star rating__star--filled\"><?php \/**\n * Review star.\n * \n * @package nyp-editor\n *\/\n\n??><\/p>\n<style><![CDATA[\n\t.review-block-star {\n\t\t--review-block-star--empty-color: #585858;\n\t\t--review-block-star--fill-color: #000;\n\t}\n]]><\/style>\n<p><svg class=\"icon-star review-block-star\" stroke=\"var(--review-block-star--fill-color)\" fill=\"var(--review-block-star--empty-color)\" stroke-width=\"0\" viewbox=\"0 0 16 16\" height=\"13px\" width=\"13px\">\n\t<defs>\n\t\t<lineargradient id=\"half-gradient\">\n\t\t\t<stop stop-opacity=\"1\" offset=\"50%\" stop-color=\"var(--review-block-star--fill-color)\"\/>\n\t\t\t<stop stop-opacity=\"1\" offset=\"0%\" stop-color=\"var(--review-block-star--empty-color)\"\/>\n\t\t<\/lineargradient>\n\t<\/defs>\n\t<path d=\"M3.612 15.443c-.386.198-.824-.149-.746-.592l.83-4.73L.173 6.765c-.329-.314-.158-.888.283-.95l4.898-.696L7.538.792c.197-.39.73-.39.927 0l2.184 4.327 4.898.696c.441.062.612.636.283.95l-3.523 3.356.83 4.73c.078.443-.36.79-.746.592L8 13.187l-4.389 2.256z\">\n\t<\/path>\n<\/svg>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"rating__star rating__star--filled\"><?php \/**\n * Review star.\n * \n * @package nyp-editor\n *\/\n\n??><\/p>\n<style><![CDATA[\n\t.review-block-star {\n\t\t--review-block-star--empty-color: #585858;\n\t\t--review-block-star--fill-color: #000;\n\t}\n]]><\/style>\n<p><svg class=\"icon-star review-block-star\" stroke=\"var(--review-block-star--fill-color)\" fill=\"var(--review-block-star--empty-color)\" stroke-width=\"0\" viewbox=\"0 0 16 16\" height=\"13px\" width=\"13px\">\n\t<defs>\n\t\t<lineargradient id=\"half-gradient\">\n\t\t\t<stop stop-opacity=\"1\" offset=\"50%\" stop-color=\"var(--review-block-star--fill-color)\"\/>\n\t\t\t<stop stop-opacity=\"1\" offset=\"0%\" stop-color=\"var(--review-block-star--empty-color)\"\/>\n\t\t<\/lineargradient>\n\t<\/defs>\n\t<path d=\"M3.612 15.443c-.386.198-.824-.149-.746-.592l.83-4.73L.173 6.765c-.329-.314-.158-.888.283-.95l4.898-.696L7.538.792c.197-.39.73-.39.927 0l2.184 4.327 4.898.696c.441.062.612.636.283.95l-3.523 3.356.83 4.73c.078.443-.36.79-.746.592L8 13.187l-4.389 2.256z\">\n\t<\/path>\n<\/svg>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"rating__star rating__star--empty\"><?php \/**\n * Review star.\n * \n * @package nyp-editor\n *\/\n\n??><\/p>\n<style><![CDATA[\n\t.review-block-star {\n\t\t--review-block-star--empty-color: #585858;\n\t\t--review-block-star--fill-color: #000;\n\t}\n]]><\/style>\n<p><svg class=\"icon-star review-block-star\" stroke=\"var(--review-block-star--fill-color)\" fill=\"var(--review-block-star--empty-color)\" stroke-width=\"0\" viewbox=\"0 0 16 16\" height=\"13px\" width=\"13px\">\n\t<defs>\n\t\t<lineargradient id=\"half-gradient\">\n\t\t\t<stop stop-opacity=\"1\" offset=\"50%\" stop-color=\"var(--review-block-star--fill-color)\"\/>\n\t\t\t<stop stop-opacity=\"1\" offset=\"0%\" stop-color=\"var(--review-block-star--empty-color)\"\/>\n\t\t<\/lineargradient>\n\t<\/defs>\n\t<path d=\"M3.612 15.443c-.386.198-.824-.149-.746-.592l.83-4.73L.173 6.765c-.329-.314-.158-.888.283-.95l4.898-.696L7.538.792c.197-.39.73-.39.927 0l2.184 4.327 4.898.696c.441.062.612.636.283.95l-3.523 3.356.83 4.73c.078.443-.36.79-.746.592L8 13.187l-4.389 2.256z\">\n\t<\/path>\n<\/svg>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<p>Running time: 109 minutes. Rated PG (thematic material, some violent content and brief language). In theaters.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>A word of advice on the new movie \u201cSheep Detectives\u201d: Give it a bleat. Sorry, a beat.<\/p>\n<p>The family film begins rather treacly, with a shepherd named George played by Hugh Jackman waxing poetic about his extreme love for his sheep. I was simultaneously annoyed and creeped out.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Every member of his flock has a name and a distinct personality. The animal obsessive reads mysteries to them nightly. George\u2019s narrated intro is so syrupy sweet it makes \u201cBabe\u201d look like \u201cThe Silence of the Lambs.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>And then\u2026 he gets murdered! The movie morphs into a darker but kid-friendly Miss Marple yarn with eccentric village suspects. Butterknives Out. After the good shepherd is fatally poisoned by inedible parts of a yew tree, the situation becomes much better. Well, for us anyway \u2014 not for George.<\/p>\n<p>Speaking of baa-ram-ewe \u201cBabe,\u201d the lively livestock also talk amongst themselves \u2014 in a confusing variety of accents \u2014 and they set off to solve the crime.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module aligncenter\">\n<div class=\"inline-module inline-module--more inline-module--columnist inline-module--more--thirds\">\n<div class=\"inline-module__inner\">\n<h2 class=\"inline-module__heading subsection-heading subsection-heading--single-line \">\n\t\t\tMore From\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"subsection-heading__sub\">Johnny Oleksinski<\/span><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/h2>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<p>The most obvious possible killer is Rebecca (Molly Gordon), George\u2019s previously unknown daughter who has conveniently just arrived in town. It turns out her pop had invented a farming medicine that made him a low-key millionaire. She is poised to inherit his wealth. Must be her, right?<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Hugh Jackman\u2019s shepherd George is murdered in \u201cSheep Detectives.\u201d <span class=\"credit\">AP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Not so fast. Nearby competing shepherd Caleb (Tosin Cole) has a motive, too. Even Reverend Hillcoate (Kobna Holdbrook-Smith), with whom George had a frosty relationship, could\u2019ve done the deed.<\/p>\n<p>A bumbling local policeman played by Nicholas Braun with Cousin Greg\u2019s wide-eyed naivety works to find the perp while a junior reporter named Elliot (Nicholas Galitzine) tries to make a name for himself at the newspaper.<\/p>\n<p>Besides Braun and Emma Thompson\u2019s cold-blooded lawyer, the rest of the humans are just fine. Hugh goes full-on Mr. Jackman\u2019s Neighborhood. That doesn\u2019t matter. It\u2019s the sheep who are the stars.\u00a0<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>A police officer (Nicholas Braun) works to find the killer, who could be Rebecca (Molly Gordon). <span class=\"credit\">AP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Our Shear-lock Holmes is Lily (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), George\u2019s favorite who always is first to correctly guess who the perp is in his novels. She leads the investigation and hunts for clues.<\/p>\n<p>Louis-Dreyfus was a smart choice to give voice to determined Lily. Much like Amy Poehler in the \u201cInside Out\u201d movies, her sound has both a warmth and a no-BS attitude.<\/p>\n<p>Most of the others wool-wearers are colorful sidekicks, like Brett Goldstein\u2019s bro-y Reggie and Ronnie, a couple of horned beasts who can\u2019t stop ramming into each other, and pompous old bird Sir Richfield (Patrick Stewart), who insists the group shun a cute baby lamb for being born in winter.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>But the real investigators here are the sheep. <span class=\"credit\">AP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>However, brooding loner Sebastian (Bryan Cranston) is a more dramatic grazer. With a gravely brogue, he reveals an anguished backstory and suffers a fate that will be a tough watch for the littlest viewers. Director Kyle Balda\u2019s movie really takes such a sharp turn from children\u2019s morning TV to baby \u201cBroadchurch.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>In that sense, it\u2019s true to the spirit of \u201cBabe\u201d \u2014 a best picture Oscar nominee, remember! \u2014 which didn\u2019t spare kids from the reality of what actually happens to pigs on farms.<\/p>\n<p>Where \u201cSheep Detective\u201d departs, though, is the execution of the chatty creatures \u2014 they are CGI rather than tactile puppets. The barnyard bunch look good enough to believe, but there is nonetheless an odd lack of naturalism to their movement. Their gate doesn\u2019t match their weight. That\u2019s a nitpick.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>The determined flock wander the town looking for clues. <span class=\"credit\">AP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Impressively, the parlor scene \u2014 or, in this case, the town square scene \u2014 that reveals the identity of the killer comes as a decent, well-thought-out surprise. The evidence adds up cleverly and the script doesn\u2019t coast on its status as a nice family movie in order to avoid delivering a satisfying conclusion.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s meaty, like a roast leg of, well you know.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><em> \u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n<p><em> \u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source celebrity.land \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>movie review THE SHEEP DETECTIVES Running time: 109 minutes. Rated PG (thematic material, some violent content and brief language). In theaters. A word of advice on the new movie \u201cSheep Detectives\u201d: Give it a bleat. Sorry, a beat. The family film begins rather treacly, with a shepherd named George played by Hugh Jackman waxing poetic [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2406376,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[25174],"tags":[25538,325730,21741,21993,35108,356249,304995,21912,350661],"class_list":["post-2406375","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-gossip","tag-actors","tag-emma-thompson","tag-entertainment","tag-films","tag-hugh-jackman","tag-julia-louis-dreyfus","tag-movie-reviews","tag-movies","tag-nicholas-braun"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/The-Sheep-Detectives-review-A-killer-is-on-the-lamb.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2406375","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2406375"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2406375\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2406377,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2406375\/revisions\/2406377"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2406376"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2406375"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2406375"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2406375"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}