The Secret of NIMH poster & wallpaper

Derek Jacobi, Dom DeLuise, Edie McClurg

To save her ill son, a field mouse must seek the aid of a colony of super-intelligent rats, in whom she has a deeper link to than she ever suspected.

Flixster Users

80% liked it

47,683 ratings

Critics

94% liked it

17 critics

G, 1 hr. 22 min.

Directed by: Don Bluth

Release Date: July 2, 1982

Invite friends to see

DVD Release Date: March 6, 2001

Get It:
 

Stats: 2,034 reviews

Get movie widget Recommend it Add to Favorites
report incorrect info

Photos

Mrs. Brisby and Nicodemus The Great Owl and Mrs. Brisby Mrs. Brisby and Elizabeth Hartman The Secret Of NIMH The Secret of NIMH The Secret of NIMH
Upload a Photo |

View All The Secret of NIMH Photos (6)

Your Rating


clear rating

Flixster Reviews (2,034)

  • SirPant
    October 1, 2009
    SirPant
    The rats of NIMH were cool, I loved this as a child!
  • markymarkslunggnome
    June 13, 2009
    markymarkslunggnome
    Glad the makers of this film gave Disney the bird and put this out there for me to enjoy! If only I was able to be scared shitless by this as a child like my friends did!
  • Darksome
    June 9, 2009
    Darksome
    The book is great, but the movie is not so great overall.
  • FangsFirst
    February 4, 2009
    FangsFirst
    It's interesting the way nostalgia and distant memory can so re-write plots of films, but more interestingly re-write the emphases of them. Often scenes we recall taking five minutes are incredibly brief, but were emotionally affecting to young minds. I don't think I've seen T...( read more)he Secret of NIMH for over a decade, but I know some images from it have been stuck in my mind forever, generally as disturbing in some fashion--but not the elements most think of. The hands of Nicodemus brought back instant recall of finding them creepy and visually "evil" to my young mind, while more firmly I recall the image of Mrs. Brisby reduced to caged mouse, cape-less and stuck in an environment more "real" (that is, less "cartoonish") than her previous ones, and the brave escape she makes to get out of this. Perhaps the involvement of water mixed with my own aquaphobia is responsible for the heart-stopping fear and general sense of disturbance these scene gave me, though.

    Mrs. Brisby (voiced by Elizabeth Hartman) is a mouse who lives on the land of Farmer Fitzgibbons (voiced briefly by Tom Hatten), her husband Jonathan having recently died. Her four children remain with her in a home made from a cinderblock, with the feisty Martin (voiced by a young Wil "Wesley Crusher" Wheaton), bossy Teresa (the first big screen appearance, auditory at least, of Shannon Doherty), precocious Cynthia (Jodi Hicks) and the ill Timothy (Ian Fried). When Timothy takes to this illness, Mrs. Brisby seeks out the help and advice of the cantankerous and forcibly solitary Mr. Ages (voiced by Arthur Malet), who bestows upon her a powder to mix with water that will bring down Timothy's fever. On her way home, Mrs. Brisby stumbles across a crow named Jeremy (voiced by Dom Deluise, setting a precedent for his continued work with Don Bluth studios, though he also worked for Disney on Oliver and Company), who is poor at listening and worse at physical movement--he's gotten himself tangled in string while trying to take it out to nest with. Mrs. Brisby works to free him but they are interrupted by the farmer's cat Dragon and run for their lives. Ages has no solution for the need to move Mrs. Brisby's family before the farmer begins plowing (and would thus destroy their home) without exposing the sickened Timothy to the cold, so at the suggestion of Auntie Shrew (voiced by Hermione Baddeley) she goes to see the Great Owl (voiced by John Carradine, to my great pleasure). The Great Owl refuses her help until she reveals the name of the man to which she was married; at the revelation of this, he sends her to the rats in the rosebush near the farmer's home. These are the Rats of NIMH, led by Nicodemus (voiced by Derek Jacobi), whom she is to see, but his age has lead the power-hungry Jenner (voiced by Paul Shenar) to seek his overthrow and the prevention of a plan to move their society to other lands. The youthful advocate of Nicodemus is Justin (voiced by Peter Strauss), who tries to help to move her home while endorsing Nicodemus' plan.

    As a longtime foe of mis-credits, I know that one of the biggest (to my mind, at least) is that of Don Bluth's studio. Of course, I don't mean that Bluth's studio gets too much credit, so much as many young minds--some never learning more--assume that animation is equivalent to Disney, and thus these animated films must also be the work of that studio. This is unfortunate, because it was a group of dissatisfied former Disney employees that founded both Don Bluth Studio (Bluth himself, Gary Goldman and John Pomeroy) and Aurora Productions, one of the financers behind this particular one. Bluth felt animation was being cheapened by cost-cutting measures and wanted to prevent this, and coupled with the work Disney did not credit him for, it's a great affront in my mind that that studio--with which I have a number of problems already--is given credit for work it does not deserve credit for (as it has more than enough of its own, some of that probably not even so deserved, at least in more recent decades). Bluth's studio has elements that set it distinctly apart, or at least managed to do so in the first decade and a half of its existence. Many recall the primary films from this studio as exceptionally dark or scary, sometimes even depressing or bleak--I'm speaking of this one, The Land Before Time and All Dogs Go to Heaven, generally, though An American Tail is also high up in terms of awareness. This is definitely true: Bluth's studio never shies away from a few drops of blood (never gratuitous) as when Mrs. Frisby scratches her arm in an escape attempt or swords are drawn on other living beings, and death is not ignored, glossed over or sanitized as a concept (though it's still not, understandably, shown in great detail either).

    What often stands out to me, though, are the differing character designs and animation styles that Bluth's studio is set apart by. Often bumpy or warty skin is used to represent age or certain animal types, in this film Nicodemus' hands and the Great Owl's talons have the greyish-blue-green skin and uneven bumps that mark this approach. Teeth are often present, and more importantly gums, with jagged and uneven teeth appearing in many animal's mouths, not out of laziness or poor drawing but in a clear decision to make them just such--Auntie Shrew has much of this. Anthropomorphic animals still carry a fair amount of their animal origins, with many a mouse-like motion from Mrs. Brisby and the odd crow-like flap from Jeremy. Then, beyond that, we have muddy and gritty environments, gloppy and less-than-pleasant mud appearing in all three of the films I know best (named above, including this one), which fits with the less "clean" approach to animation and design that this studio had over its contemporary competition from Disney. Certainly the influence and background shows, but the less carefully and evenly proportioned characters are a far cry from even the distortions of, say, The Rescuers--which Bluth was even involved with. These set the film apart as one that is taking animation less as an art form to differentiate from reality and instead as one to distort but visually endorse reality, with the varied elements holding themselves out more prominently in the contrast. The animation, of course, is masterful, especially with the limited time and budget involved, with transparent shadows through double exposure and backlit moments for the "mystical" eyes of characters like Nicodemus, or his fantastic magical pen that builds words from settling golden dust. Reflections are more real and less carefully planned, and this approach to the minutiae mixed with a careful eye for colouration of characters based on lighting, as well as a kaleidoscopic approach to colouring itself is an absolute pleasure to watch.

    What I definitely did not have pointed out as a child or an adult is the presence of a Jerry Goldsmith score, which does not disappoint as always, using a chorus that recalls many of the familiar tropes of Disney film but then transcends them through use of a composer with a distinct spirit and sound, but one even willing to donate a piece to be turned to a song, which, to my surprise and delight, was worded and sung by Paul Williams, who I'm quite a sucker for. My lack of memory for this was just further proof of how little of this movie I really recalled--it is just as much a masterpiece of animation as is often said, and has just the right tinge of intelligence and darkness to hold a viewer of any age.
  • senorperfecto1
    March 9, 2008
    senorperfecto1
    With her son sick with pneumonia, a field mouse must reluctantly work with a group of super intelligent rats to save his life. Unknowing to Mrs. Brisby, the field mouse, she has a deeper connection to the rats through her late husband Jonathan then she knew. After meeting with ol...( read more)d wise leader of the rats, Nicodemus, she learns the secret past of her husband. Though an evil plot is being mastermind behind the scenes by the evil rat Jenner. The fate of her son and Nicodemus lies in the hands of Mrs. Brisby and her new friend Justin.
    The Secret of NIMH is more then a children?s movie. The movie is very dark and takes a realistic view of life. The situations the animals face in this movie closely resemble the struggles of real life. Based of the classic fable Mrs. Brisby and the Rats of NIMH, the movie holds true and becomes an instant classic. The Secret of NIMH is a well told tell with great animation for the time period the movie was made. The Secret of NIMH receives four secrets out of five for being an instant classic that the whole will enjoy.
  • chadroesti
    November 20, 2009
    chadroesti
    One of my favorite childhood cartoons. Great voice acting, especially by Dom DeLuise who really cracked me up. Kids still love this movie about super intelligent mice and rats who have become so humanlike, treachery and scheming become part of their natures. Tiny Heroes and vi...( read more)llians turn the average field, rose bush, and yard into a living, breathing environment.

    The mixture of intelligence and darkness make this a unique experience, especially in 1982 when it seemed Disney had a monopoly of all cartoon movies. Disney movies are mostly light and fluffy with typical endings. This cartoon has none of that.

    I remember the dark themes as a youth of 7 or 8 when I first watched it. Some scenes stuck with me. Mrs. Brisby's frantic fight for freedom when trapped, her heroic efforts to save her son Timmy from sickness. Being scared of The Great Owl with his gnarled talons as he finished eating one of Mrs. Brisby's neighbors. Old Nicodemus's apperance and voice. And especially the final scene where the Rats attempt to move Mrs. Brisby's home in a rainstorm and the fight between Jenner and Justin.

    Hasn't seemed to lose much for me in the past 25 years..
  • jakobsmomm
    November 19, 2009
    jakobsmomm
    kind of scary for kids under perhaps 8, by kids I mean me when I was that age, but great movie!
  • nestordonkey
    November 16, 2009
    nestordonkey
    It"s said to be a best
  • MorpheusOne
    November 8, 2009
    MorpheusOne
    I saw it but, I don't remember it well enough to give it an honest rating. It looks interesting enough to give it a watch, at least one more time...
  • calumprice1
    October 29, 2009
    calumprice1
    When I first saw this film when I was a youngling, I was very afraid of many aspects it contained, yet I was also in love with it. As a cartoon, it captures the very familiar values that we have seen in such praised Disney films such as The Sword in the Stone" and "The Black Caul...( read more)dron". This one is much darker though, and because so, it also brings forth, a much scarier element that Disney will never have! Being based completely on archetypical formation, the "Secret of NIMH" is based on the famed children's book "Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH". As the book is very darling, and for children of all ages, the film is put together in a more mature, adult style, with intense moments. Later on in life, I realize that children watching this film is an amazing happening, if I knew then, what I know now about the film, I would have been completely overtaken by the film. Some things are better left unknown in childhood. Most kids today will not appreciate this film, for all the glory in which it was made. There were two direct-to-video sequels. Two. This is unacceptable for a movie of this type. The two latter films were made with light, fluffy, musical touches that did NOT capture anything this film did. The two latter films had NO business being made! The generation I grew up in was able to take this wondrous intensity we were given, today, things are much different, and movies like this one are hardly seen. The "toy story" genre has taken over, and most films that would, otherwise be like this one are laughably awful, without any real heart. Don Bluth was expressing his strong imagination for this one, most "pixar" company films are just money, and offer nothing for anyone except babies in cribs! This movie is a cartoon, a pure adventure, and a treasure full of heart! Don Bluth is a wonderful filmmaker!

View All The Secret of NIMH Reviews

Critic Reviews

October 23, 2004
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

It looks good, moves well, and delights our eyes. full review

View more The Secret of NIMH reviews at RottenTomatoes.com

Comments

This board looks lonely. Be the first to talk about "The Secret of NIMH" !

Post A Comment | View All Comments

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

All Rotten Tomatoes content is used under license from Rotten Tomatoes. Rotten Tomatoes, Certified Fresh, and the Tomatometer are the trademarks of Incfusion Corporation, d/b/a Rotten Tomatoes, a subsidiary of IGN Entertainment, Inc.

Official Trailer

View Larger The Secret of NIMH Trailer

Cast

More Like This

Click a thumb to vote on that suggestion, or add your own suggestions.

  • Underworld: Evolution
    Underworld: Evolution (26%)
  • Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
    Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (47%)
  • An American Tail
    An American Tail (83%)
  • Dragonheart
    Dragonheart (0%)

More Movies like The Secret of NIMH

Facts

No facts approved yet. Be the first

The Secret of NIM... : Watch Free on TV

The Secret of NIMH Trivia

  • She played in Heathers, Charmed, Secret of the Nimh, and Night Shift!  Answer »
  • What is the name of the mouse praised by the rats in the "Secret of Nimh" ?  Answer »
  • Who is the leader of the Rats in "The Secret of NIMH"?  Answer »
  • What illness does Timmy have in "The secret of NIMH?"  Answer »
More The Secret of NIMH Trivia

Movie Quizzes

Create a Quiz |

All Quizzes

Video Clips

Upload a Video |

All The Secret of NIMH Videos

Meet Other Fans

Add The Secret of NIMH to favorites

Recent News

No recent headlines. Got one?

Recent Lists

Make a List |

View All Lists

Most Popular Skin

daisy184 Skin by daisy184
1993 Profiles
Add to Profile

More Skins