40 years later, 'The Secret of NIMH' remains one of the greatest animated movies of all-time

by Chris Peterson, OnScreen Founder

This July marks the 40th anniversary of one of the greatest animated movies of all time, The Secret of NIMH. Directed by the legendary Don Bluth, the film set a new standard of where animation could go in terms of storytelling, visuals, and appealing to both children and adults.

So why isn’t this film often mentioned in discussions about the great animated projects of the late 20th Century? That’s a good question which I’ll try to answer. But first, let’s discuss the film’s greatness and impact on animation in the 1980s.

The film centers on Mrs. Brisby, a widowed mouse living on a farm with her four children, including Timmy, who's bedridden with pneumonia. When they're forced to find a new home, the Great Owl advises Mrs. Brisby to seek the help of Nicodemus, the king of the rat colony. Venturing underground, she discovers an entire civilization of rats that tell her that they revere her late husband Jonathan. Nicodemus explains that Jonathan helped them escape from NIMH -- the National Institute of Mental Health -- when he was a fellow prisoner there and where they were experimented on and injected with super-intelligence drugs.

The film is based o the book, Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH by Robert C. O'Brien. Interestingly enough, the film’s rights were offered to Disney in 1972 but the studio turned them down. That’s when former Disney animator, Bluth, took the project to Aurora Productions and also formed his own production company Don Bluth Productions. The film was greenlit with a $5 million budget and given 30 months to complete.

One of the first things I love about this film is the story. It’s dark, unconventional and even though it deals in fantasy, has a very realistic image of single parenthood and survival. The characters show pain and grief in ways animated movies didn’t go near during that time.

The other striking feature of this film is its visuals. While there were glimpses of Don Bluth’s style of animation in projects such as The Fox and the Hound, here is where we really begin to see it take shape. Byt the time we get to An American Tail and The Land Before Time, it becomes a signature style. In NIMH, the colors are darker, harder, and more impactful. There is nothing soft about this movie. It’s atmospherical in the best way.

Beyond that, it features an incredible cast of voice talent which included Derek Jacobi, Elizabeth Hartman, Dom DeLuise, and a young Will Wheaton and Shennen Doherty.

Jerry Goldsmith’s haunting and epic score rounds out this film.

When it was released, it was hailed by critics and did moderately well at the box office grossing just over $14 million. Later that year, the film won Best Animated Feature at the Saturn Awards.

It also kicked off a magnificent run for Don Buth studios with projects such as An American Tail, The Land Before Time and All Dogs Go to Heaven.

So why isn’t this film as highly regarded as it should be when discussing the great animated movies of all time? I think a lot of that has to do with the fact that the latter Bluth films had more of a pop culture impact. I think Disney’s resurgence (likely in response to Bluth’s work)at the end of the decade through the early 90s cast a shadow over work earlier in the decade.

But I think most of all, it’s because while brilliant, The Secret of NIMH isn’t a particularly rewatchable film. In fact, it’s a tough viewing altogether. It’s not a happy story and the level of violence and scary elements often prevent families from watching it with little ones. All of Bluth’s 1980s work features more adult themes but NIMH doesn’t blend it as much for children as his later work perfects. My son is 8-years old and he often had to run out of the room or hide behind the couch at moments in the film.

But all of that doesn’t take anything away from the film’s greatness and why I feel it’s at the top of my list. I encourage you to give it a shot if you can or a much-needed rewatch.