Don Bluth Retrospective Series: 'The Secret Of NIMH' (1982)

TV & Film

Feb 17

“Courage of the heart is very rare. The stone has a power when it’s there.” -Nicodemus

In response to what he felt were declining animation standards at Disney, as well as rumors of a shutdown of the production unit, former Disney animator director Don Bluth (b. 1937), who was responsible for such Disney films as The Rescuers (1977) and Pete’s Dragon (1977), along with some other animators, staged a walkout, forming a new independent animation studio.

On July 30, 1982, their first film, The Secret of NIMH, was released, adapted from a novel by author Robert C. O’Brien entitled Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH. The Secret of NIMH is still regarded as their studio’s best film with gorgeous hand-drawn animation that rivals Disney animated films, as well as a soaring film score.

RELATED:

Featured

'Owl House' Creators Release Trailer For 'Knights Of Guinevere'

The film follows a recently widowed field mouse named Mrs. Brisby, who seeks out help from a nearby colony of rats to move her cinderblock home away from the danger of a farmer’s tractor after one of her children, Timmy, falls ill with pneumonia, making it dangerous to move him. Through her journey to find the Rats of NIMH, helped along by several different creatures, Mrs. Brisby discovers that the rats became super-intelligent through a series of experiments conducted by the National Institute of Mental Health (aka NIMH). She also discovers that she has a deeper personal connection to them in the form of her late husband, Jonathan, who was also experimented on at NIMH. She also discovers that the rats are in the midst of an internal political conflict that jeopardizes her mission.

The film embraces several important themes including, but not limited to courage, sacrifice, friendship, and determination. The film was initially rejected by Disney as being “too dark” to be a commercial success and it is indeed a “dark” film, especially for a G-rated film back in 1982. The film features a mature story with some “scary” sequences, as well as some violence, blood, and even character deaths. The film even made Rotten Tomatoes’ list of the top ten scariest animated children’s films, alongside a later Disney animated film, The Black Cauldron (1985), which was similarly criticized for being too dark for a young audience.

Don Bluth personally directed the film and chose a cast of well-respected actors, as well as some younger up-and-coming ones such as Wil Wheaton (Stand By Me) and Shannon Doherty (Beverly Hills 90210). Some of the other notables in the cast include Elizabeth Hartman (A Patch of Blue), Derek Jacobi (Gladiator), John Carradine (The Ten Commandments), Peter Strauss (Spacehunter: Adventures in the Forbidden Zone), and Dom DeLuise. DeLuise would go on to become a mainstay voice actor in several of Bluth’s later projects such as An American Tail (1986) and All Dogs Go To Heaven (1989).

The film’s majestic score was composed by legendary film composer Jerry Goldsmith (Star Trek: The Motion Picture), his first for an animated film. Goldsmith liked the film so much that he volunteered an extra three weeks of his time to polish and refine his work even introduced the film to Steven Spielberg, who would go on to work with Bluth on An American Tale (1986).

The film also features an end credits vocal song, Flying Dreams, performed by singer Paul Williams (of Peter, Paul, and Mary). A softer “lullaby” version of the song is heard earlier in the film performed by Sally Stevens as Mrs. Brisby is tending to her sick child.

The film earned a modest but underwhelming profit of 10 million dollars on a budget of 7 million dollars, possibly due to tough competition with films such as Spielberg’s E.T. The Extraterrestrial (1982) that same year. However, despite its poor draw at the box office, it has found popularity on home video and cable. The film currently has very high ratings on Rotten Tomatoes, scoring 93% on the Tomatometer and 86% on the Popcornmeter. The film spawned a poorly received direct-to-video sequel, Secret of NIMH 2: Timmy to the Rescue in 1998. The sequel film starred Ralph Macchio (The Karate Kid) as Mrs. Brisby’s son, Timmy, and featured a small number of returning cast members such as Dom DeLuise (Jeremy), and Arthur Malet (Mr. Ages).

The Secret of NIMH continues to be a favorite among fans of Don Bluth’s works, however, and should be considered essential viewing for anybody looking for an inspirational story, well-written characters, lustrous animation, and a soaring soundtrack. The original MGM trailer for the film can be seen here:

READ NEXT:

Featured