The buzz on “ The Sheep Detectives ” was that it’s a cross between “Babe” and “Knives Out.” Turns out, the buzz is true. Hugh Jackman plays George, a shepherd tending his flock in an idyllic, isolated meadow in the fictional English village of Denbrook. A loner who lives in a camper, George is surly to neighboring townspeople but infinitely protective of his sheep, whom he raises only for their wool. His favorite nighttime activity is reading detective novels aloud to the herd before bedtime, despite knowing they can’t comprehend his words. Except they do. The sheep, rendered in the film as photorealistic animated creations, don’t converse with humans but talk openly with each other. Lily (voiced by Julia-Louis Dreyfus) is the smartest of the bunch: She routinely figures out whodunit long before George finishes up. When he is mysteriously murdered about 20 minutes into the movie, it is Lily who leads the charge to collar the culprit.…