Talking animal movies do not, on the whole, have the best reputation. Yes, there is “Babe,” but “Babe” is the exception. Most are pretty bad, whether it’s the uncanny effects, the shoddy storytelling or some horrifying combination of the two.
Audiences have earned the right to be skeptical when something like “The Sheep Detectives” comes along — everyone involved was too. And yet this family-friendly “Knives Out” with a murder mystery at the center, a starry ensemble including Hugh Jackman, Emma Thompson and Nicholas Braun, as well as the voices of Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Bryan Cranston, Regina Hall and Patrick Stewart as yes, talking sheep, has caught more than a few off guard for its quirky humor, its sincerity and its unexpected depth.
