The Secret of NIMH: Special Edition (Widescreen)

 

 

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This was one of my favourite films as a child. My grandmother had it on video, and I watched it at every opportunity. Surprisingly, it still holds up as an adult too. Next to today's animation standards, it's a simply made film, but the painted animations are increadibly beautiful, and the characters are endearing. The overall tone is pleasantly and eerily suspenseful, but lightened throughout by humour. (But I recall my five-year-old cousin finding it too scary, so parents may want to judge for themselves). There are moments of subtle humour I didn't notice as a child ... the farmer on the phone, telling NIMH scientists "I don't know about any strange behaviour", in reference to the rats, while an organized gang of rats sneaks past his window sill, carrying away an entire set of christmas lights from their house.

A warning to readers of the book: As much as I feel a warm sense of nostalgia watching this film, I must admit that my love for this film lessened a fair bit after discovering the book at thirteen. It's just as well that the film abandoned the (admitedly dull) name of the book (Mrs Frisby and the Rats of Nimh) - this film really should not be called a remake of the book at all. The film employs the characters and a rough approximation of the story, but rewrites the story beyond recognition from there. This is not just a case of needing to shorten a complex story: the film is blatenly untrue to many of the basic themes of the book.

The book is an allegorical critique of science, and of attempts to build rational, moral, self-sufficient societies. In some ways, the book is almost Lord of the Flies in reverse. It asks the question: what would happen if an unsocialized, unorganized group of rats were given human-level intelligence and left to build themselves a perfect society from the ground up? The rats, at the point where Mrs Frisby meets them face a dilemma: should they continue to live an easy life, living at the farm, relying on the resources provided by humans, but with an ever-increasing risk of exposure... or should they take the harder choice, leaving the farm to build a new civilization in a secluded location where they can be self-sufficient and live honestly without stealing their resources. In a way, the story could actually be likened to some of today's environmental choices, though I hadn't seen it that way before.

The film reverses the emphasis and puts Mrs Frisby's story at the forefront, then seemingly worries that our heroine, Mrs Frisby, has too little to do, so it introduces a magical locket with which Mrs Frisby is ultimately able to save her family herself rather than relying upon the rats. In fact, this change of perspective is present throughout the film: even the description of the rat's imprisonment at NIMH and the experiments they are subjected to, is given a magical air. The rats, are given injections, "then one day, we looked at the words on the cage... and understood them" intones Nicodemus, as though a magical transformation had taken place, transplanting the ability to read into their minds.... rather than the gradual process of learning to read through a long series of experiments. A small detail, but symptomatic of the entire change in tone. In fairness, though, the sense of magic was part of the appeal for me as a kid, to the point of completely misinterpreting some scenes: the owl intones at one point "Go to the lee of the stone." in such mystical sincerity, that I assumed this a very deep instruction, and was a little disappointed to later learn that "lee" just means "sheltered from the wind"... very sensible directions from the viewpoint of a bird, I suppose, but not nearly as impressive sounding.

Most upsetting, the filmscript writer seems to have felt that an ending wouldn't be an ending without a cliched battle of good against evil, in the form of a rat who, being power-hungry decides to threaten the life of Nicodemus, the leader of the rats. This entire sequence is banal in its simplicity, and frustrating in its morality: we already have far too many children's tales that contain cardboard-cut-out irredemable bad-guys. There's at least a little good in all people, and I find it disturbing that we seem so intent on teaching children that some people are bad through and through. And sadly, this entire sequence was completely unnecessary to create a sense of climax in the film.

So, take this film for what it is: an appealing, if imperfect, tale. But for readers of the book, do not expect this to be a film adaptation thereof. At best, it's a different fanciful tale about the same characters.

Awesome movie/cartoon. I originally had it for a number of years on VHS, but alas, our VCR kicked the bucket so I had to get it on DVD because my children were wanting to watch it...........I love this movie & always have and now my kids can enjoy what I did as a child.

Thanks Amazon for carrying all my childhood faves!!

There are two movies I remember as a child that gave me a sense of intense wonder and awe. One was the Last Unicorn, and the other was the Secret of Nimh. Both movies displayed an unprecedented level of maturity when tackling their respective storylines. The Secret of Nimh is much like the Last Unicorn in the sense that the plot is intelligent, and at times necessarily dark. It's a haunting movie by many standards, but strikes a better balance between comedy, excitement, and foreboding than the Last Unicorn does.

A rather simple premise opens the door to a much larger world when one watches the Secret of Nimh. The plight of Mrs. Brisbee and her children is just something one would expect to see on any farmland, especially during plow season. But when Mrs. Brisbee seeks out help from the woefully dangerous Rats of Nimh, she discovers an entire world she never knew existed.

There are many intelligent plot twists that come together nicely in this movie. A family in peril, government-funded animal experimentation and even a bit of unexplained mysticism all work together to draw the viewer in. Anyone expecting an animated film designed purely to maintain a hold over the short attention spans of toddlers will be in for a surprise. The film is absolutely gorgeous to watch, more so for its lush imagination than its actual artistic quality. Every ounce of this film drips with uniqueness, and I challenge anyone to find a movie that has the same feel as the Secret of Nimh. It is a bit less serious and melancholy than the Last Unicorn, but it still manages to eschew frivolous silliness in favor of some real depth and emotion within its characters.

Highly recommended for all ages!

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5.0 out of 5 stars filled with wonder
As a kid in the 1980's, this was a favorite film of mine. I remember thinking how cool and imaginative this was compared to the sludge of rerun 80's tv cartoons (did anyone else... Read more

Published on July 18 2004 by SystemStructure

5.0 out of 5 stars Not the same as the book, but just as good anyway!
While this movie is a bit more fantasy-like than the book, I think it's just as good. The first time I saw this was several years ago when Nickelodeon used to play movies on... Read more

Published on May 21 2004 by Maya

5.0 out of 5 stars A childhood classic
This had been my favorite cartoon movie since I was six years old. I knew every line Mrs. Brisby spoke. Read more

Published on May 16 2004

5.0 out of 5 stars Watching it right now...
I'm 23 years old now, and my girlfriend wanted me to rent this...I was like "uh, the secret of nimh??? ok sweetie whatever you say... Read more

Published on May 9 2004 by Six

4.0 out of 5 stars Better Than the book
this based on the book Mis Frisby and the rats of Nimh. But ssome things have been alterd. This is very intense movie with lot of scary parts. Read more

Published on April 23 2004 by J. P. Suhr

5.0 out of 5 stars The Secret of NIMH movie vs. the Book
I've watched this movie throughout my life from when i was just a little girl. i've also read the book and still have the original movie and published book. Read more

Published on April 20 2004 by BookReader

5.0 out of 5 stars A wonderful classic
I have read many of the other reviews for this particular film, and I have to say that I am impressed with the eloquence of most. Read more

Published on April 6 2004 by ivory_tusk

5.0 out of 5 stars Very Dreamy And Cool.......
Absolutly brillaint~ The backgrounds sparkle and the animation is GREAT for the time it was made(1982)

I LOVE Mrs.Brisby. Read more

Published on Mar 26 2004

1.0 out of 5 stars wow
Wow, how can you people say this is a good movie?!?!
Ever read the book, it makes this movie look like crap on the side of the road that's days old. Read more

Published on Mar 14 2004 by Fatt

1.0 out of 5 stars Awful
The storyline had NOTHING to do with the book! The animation was exceptional, but the storyline was repulsively unlike the book. Read more

Published on Feb 27 2004 by Lizzy

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