For a film about talking sheep solving a murder, The Sheep Detectives arrives at surprisingly profound truths about grief, memory, and what it means to keep moving forward.
Written by Megan Duggan
When I watched The Sheep Detectives in theatres, I went in completely blind. I hadn’t seen the trailer, had barely looked up the plot, and found out that the sheep could speak on the drive there. The room was packed with more adults than children, which threw me even more than the talking sheep. My first thought was that adults are eager to experience whimsy and almost nostalgic films that speak to the youth inside them. It was really endearing to hear the rhythmic giggles and general excitement brought on by an animated flock of sheep.
To me, The Sheep Detectives played like Knives Out (2019), but instead of Benoit Blanc solving the case, we get to see a dozen adorable sheep investigate their shepherd’s murder. The film, based on the novel "Three Bags Full" by Leonie Swann, follows a shepherd named George (Hugh Jackman) who loves his flock of sheep as though they were his children, reading them stories and engaging with them as though they were human. One night, when George unexpectedly dies, which the police write off as an accident, his flock begins to investigate their shepherd’s death, insisting that he was murdered by one of the eccentric characters in the film’s ensemble. Tim Derry (Nicholas Braun), the town’s clearly inexperienced and naive police officer, unknowingly works hand-in-hand with George’s flock as they feed him and the other townsfolk clues that they find, despite their inability to communicate. The Sheep Detectives’ star-studded cast also includes performances from Emma Thompson, Molly Gordon, Nicholas Galitzine, and more.
On top of being able to speak, the sheep have the magical ability of erasing their own memories. In troubling or difficult moments, the flock can collectively erase the previous few minutes of memory from their brains, allowing them to avoid dealing with things that are particularly upsetting to them. While the theme of remembrance is key to the film, Lily (voiced by Julia Louis-Dreyfus), the smartest sheep of the flock, alongside Mopple (voiced by Chris O'Dowd), choose to remember, not participating in the ritual the way the other sheep do. Immediately, it is evident that they understand more about the world than the rest of the flock, who exist in a kind of blissful ignorance.
To be completely honest, the importance of this went right over my head in my viewing. While I would like to think I am an attentive viewer, the significance of the sheep choosing to remember in order to solve the mystery of their shepherd's death was not something I particularly thought twice about. Audiences can enjoy the film's whimsy at face value, but older viewers may find themselves drawn to its deeper themes. The ability of the film to be completely dissected for its universal truths, while also just being a film about talking, murder-solving sheep, is hilariously beautiful.
When the sheep come to the realisation that they must confront fear and uncertainty and the dark parts of reality that are far too common, their whole perspective on their own existence changes. The irony that they are ultimately raised to be eaten becomes increasingly important, which is not evident to many of the sheep who choose to live in a way that protects them from hardship. While the sheep can live in their secluded field with their thoughtful and loving shepherd, life doesn’t allow them this luxury forever, and they are even forced to venture into the town in order to feed Tim pieces of the puzzle that could ultimately bring George justice. "All you have to do is cross the road" is a beautifully poetic way to view overcoming anxieties and fears, which is shared by one of the sheep in order to motivate the others. I think the film expertly feeds these truths to all ages and makes them digestible in a way that some blockbuster dramas are never able to.
The Sheep Detectives lives in the weird, grey area where grief and joy intersect. The upsetting truth about life is that emotions are never completely separate from each other, no matter how badly you want them to be. Life continues on despite grief and sadness, no matter how much you wish you could put the world on pause and sulk in it for a minute. At the film’s climax, Lily struggles with the pain that comes with remembering and is comforted by Mopple in a deeply impactful conversation. This scene stood out to many viewers online because of its emotional impact, with many highlighting its exploration of grief and loss. Mopple argued that, rather than being a painful emotion, grief is a way of remembering, allowing them to keep the shepherd in their lives in a nonphysical way. Despite the fact that I haven’t had to encounter grief many times in my life, I know that there is no correct way to overcome it. Many people hide or run from it, or choose that forgetting is the more comfortable option. Our human instincts (or sheep in this case) are to avoid discomfort and pain, no matter the cost, even if it causes us more pain down the line. As cliché as it is, the only way past really is through, which Mopple speaks to in this pivotal scene, teaching Lily that the grief she feels about George’s death is something she should explore in order to experience the full scope of existence. The film uses humour and playfulness as a means of exploring grief in a way that is easily grasped by audiences, mirroring the journey of the flock itself.
I find myself returning to the expectations I had before watching and how different the film's lasting impressions were from what I expected. Although I wish the film explored its themes of grief and remembrance more deeply, I understand the restraint. Pushing further into that emotional territory may have come at the expense of the lighthearted charm that makes the film so special. The performances are strong throughout, with Jackman even delivering stunning emotional performances opposite characters that are later brought to life through animation. The cinematography almost took me back to my childhood, with colour grading that embraces bright, warm tones that have been quickly disappearing from many recent blockbusters.
For a film about talking sheep solving a murder, The Sheep Detectives arrives at surprisingly profound truths about grief, memory, and what it means to keep moving forward. Its greatest achievement is making those ideas accessible without sacrificing the joy and whimsy that make the journey so beautiful.
The Sheep Detectives is still playing in theatres.
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