May 23, 2026 – This movie, based on the 2005 Leonie Swann novel “Glennkill” (Three Bags Full) has all the characteristics of whimsical English small town murder mystery, except for one thing, the main characters are sheep, and they help solve the crime.

Directed by Kyle Balda (“Despicable Me 3”) this movie is charming, whimsical and funny, except for the murder, of course and a heroic sheep killed by dogs. The victim is a sheepherder with a big secret, George Hardy (played by Hugh Jackman of “Song Sung Blue”). Hardy was in the habit of reading murder mysteries to his flock of sheep before bed every night. So when he is murdered, the sheep, seeing the incompetence of local police, decide to solve the crime themselves.

While the sheep prove smart enough to solve the crime, they cannot bring the killer to justice, so they do need the help of police, in the person of Tim Derry (played by Nicholas Braun of “The Perks of Being a Wallflower”) the only police officer in the small Irish town where the murder takes place. At first, Officer Derry seems like quite a dim bulb, but it turns out he's just very naive and inexperienced when it comes to investigating a complex crime like this. Another smart person who shows up is Hardy's lawyer, Lydia Harbottle (Emma Thompson of “Saving Mr. Banks”).

Derry's investigation is spurred on by a news reporter, Elliot Matthews (Nicholas Galitzine of “The Idea of You”) who appears to be a good deal smarter than Derry. Matthews helps Officer Derry to realize that Hardy's death was the result of murder. Derry is also aided surreptitiously by the sheep, led by the smartest of all the sheep, Lily, along with Mopple, a remembering ram, and an outcast winter lamb.

During their investigation, the sheep have to get outside their comfort zone, and that includes leaving the farm and going to town. They also have to confront the unpleasant truth about life, that when they die they don't turn into clouds. They also learn that winter lambs should not be outcast, that they are just as good as the spring lambs.

A movie like this leans heavily on its characters, and how interesting they are. This movie has strong characters, aided by a good voice cast for the sheep characters, including Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Bryan Cranston and Chris O'Dowd. The mystery part of the story works well enough, using the usual mystery story tricks like misdirection and hidden identities to keep the audience guessing. This movie is pretty good lighthearted entertainment. It rates a B.

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