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The Secret of NIMH
Overlook Pick

The Secret of NIMH

Right before your eyes, and beyond your wildest dreams.
75
User Score949 ratings
TMDB 7.516+19821h 23mEnglish
AdventureAnimationDramaFamilyFantasyMysteryScience Fiction

Synopsis

A widowed field mouse must move her family -- including an ailing son -- to escape a farmer's plow. Aided by a crow and a pack of superintelligent, escaped lab rats, the brave mother struggles to transplant her home to firmer ground.

Director
Don BluthFrom TMDB credits
Studio
United Artists5 production companies
Release
June 17, 1982Released
Box Office
$15MBudget $7M

Top Cast

8 of 20
Elizabeth Hartman
Elizabeth Hartman
Mrs. Brisby (voice)
Derek Jacobi
Derek Jacobi
Nicodemus (voice)
Arthur Malet
Arthur Malet
Mr. Ages (voice)
Dom DeLuise
Dom DeLuise
Jeremy (voice)
Hermione Baddeley
Hermione Baddeley
Auntie Shrew (voice)
Shannen Doherty
Shannen Doherty
Teresa (voice)
Wil Wheaton
Wil Wheaton
Martin (voice)
Jodi Hicks
Cynthia (voice)

Trailers & Photos

Reviews

From TMDB users
RealZero
Jan 3, 2026

This is still one of my favorite animated movies. It combines so many different emotions so well: a cute and loving family, the urgency and danger of fleeing (/moving) your home with dangerous and action-filled scenes, and dark and scary moments involving cats and owls, clearly some of a mouse's biggest fears. Mrs Brisby herself is an absolutely lovely, beautiful character. Right from the start you see and feel how she's a loving mother, polite and shy. But due to adversary she has to rise about her gentleness and fear and really shows the strength you can develop when fighting for your loved ones. The music is really nice and fitting and I'm happy they just re-released an extended soundtrack. But maybe even more impressive is the visual style. As one came to expect from Don Bluth movies of that time, everything is beautiful, each single background of each scene a gorgeous painting even outside the movie's context, one thing I really miss in modern animation, as much as I enjoy modern stuff as well. Some added, beautiful sparkle effects on things like her medallion or the shiny lights in the rat's hideout, just lovely!! All voice actors do a great job, but I especially love Mrs Brisby herself, the loving warmth in her voice, the gentle tone when asking for help and especially how she still tries to stay gentle and polite when obviously irritated by Jeremy again. I can certainly recommend this movie! I want to support this lovely single mother and hug her and her kids so much! - If you like the movie and don't mind reading books, I also really recommend the book it is based on. The book has no magical items, no clear antagonist (Jenner is only mentioned) and describes much more of what happens around NIMH, so, even if you know one, watching/reading the other still puts a new spin on it.

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