The Sheep Detectives

George Hardy (Hugh Jackman) is a devoted shepherd to his flock of sheep. Aside from making sure they are fed and giving them their medicine, he reads them detective novels every night. When an unthinkable tragedy rocks the farm, the sheep realize that they must become the detectives and solve the crime.

While Jackman delivers his most wholesome performance yet. Joined by the likes Hong Chau, Nicholas Braun, Nicholas Galitizine, Molly Gordon and Emma Thompson they were all brilliant in their roles. However, the sheep were front and center. Lily (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), Mopple (Chris O’Dowd) and Sebastian (Bryan Cranston) were the leaders of the flock who took it upon themselves to try and solve the mystery. The voice talents didn’t stop there with Brett Ronnie and Reggie (Brett Goldstein), Sir Ritchfield (Patrick Stewart), Cloud (Regina Hall) and Zora (Bella Ramsey). Each had such a distinct personality that helped set them apart from the rest. They are so real and I wanted them to succeed so badly in their quest for the truth.

The mystery element was the main selling point for me. Not only was it compelling, but I was invested from the get go and couldn’t wait to see how it would all play out. The Agatha Christie vibes were strong – the clues were bountiful and the suspect list was small yet filled with some good options. I genuinely did not see that final twist coming which made it all the better. Paired with the quaint English countryside village, it was the perfect backdrop for the story.

I truly did not expect this film to tug at my heartstrings so much. With the themes of community and teamwork as well as found family featured, there were a couple of moments there that had me in tears. The bond between an animal and a human really can be so special and to see this depicted many times throughout was lovely. I also enjoyed seeing the sheep come together to prove they are so much more than those who have deemed them stupid.

The Sheep Detectives is a delightful film. Whether young or old, it is perfect for the whole family. If you are looking for something that will capture your heart, I recommend checking it out.

Rating: ♥️♥️♥️♥️.5

Argylle

The highly anticipated new espionage flick from director Matthew Vaughn is about Elly Conway (Bryce Dallas Howard), a reclusive novelist who doesn’t get out much. When the plot of one of her books gets a little too close to real life events, she finds herself swept up into a life that she only ever wrote about in her books. With the help of real agent Aidan (Sam Rockwell), the two must think ahead of the game to save themselves.

Argylle had all the right ingredients for a great film. Unfortunately it fell completely and utterly short in so many ways. While it did start off promisingly enough, it wasn’t long before I started to lose track of what exactly was going on as the plot grew more and more convoluted. At some point, I couldn’t help but wonder if we were supposed to be taking it seriously or if it was some sort of parody.

One of the issues here was that there was simply too much happening at once. It was as though one detail from every spy movie to ever exist was added in to make the ultimate spy film. I’m not sure why they thought this was the right move because instead of it having a positive effect, I’d say the opposite happened instead. And once the twists were introduced, they just didn’t stop.

Another aspect that really bugged me was Howard’s performance. I understand that Elly was supposed to be scared – anybody would be in her position! However, I got annoyed with her very quickly and eventually kept rolling my eyes every time she was on screen which was obviously a lot considering she’s the main character. At least the rest of the cast was filled to the brim with big stars from the likes of Henry Cavill, to Dua Lipa and Ariana DeBose, Bryan Cranston, John Cena and of course Catherine O’Hara that it almost didn’t matter.

To say that Argylle was a disappointment is an understatement. I had been so looking forward to it especially since it was helmed as being the new Kingsman. It seemed as though there were some good foundations set that just weren’t executed well at all. I’ll probably still check out any future instalments to see if this one was just a fluke, but it wasn’t off to a great start.

Rating: ♥️♥️