It wasn't until after the film was released that its makers realized the heroic rodent's name is never mentioned. But this beta-rat becomes conscience-stricken, turns on Jenner, and is ultimately the one who kills him. Brisby's home and kills Nicodemus, is assisted by a reluctant sidekick. Jenner, the conniving rat who sabotages the plan to move Mrs.
#NIMH BLUSH BLUSH MOVIE#
THE MOVIE NEVER TELLS US ONE IMPORTANT CHARACTER'S NAME. He was asking if we had noticed anything strange about the rats on the farm.Īnecdotally, when we mentioned this on Twitter, we were surprised to find that many fans of the film never realized what "NIMH" meant. Characters in the movie only call it "NIMH" except for the very first time it comes up:įARMER'S WIFE: Dear, a man came by today, from NIMH.įARMER'S WIFE: Yes, you know, the National Institute of Mental Health. It's the National Institute of Mental Health, the research facility where rats were being experimented upon. THE MOVIE ONLY TELLS US ONCE WHAT "NIMH" MEANS. Reitherman's reply: "We've already got a mouse." 5.
DISNEY TURNED THE BOOK DOWN.Īccording to writer/producer Gary Goldman, animator Ken Anderson first took the book to Wolfgang "Woolie" Reitherman, Disney's chief animator. The title was shortened for the movie, and Frisby-which is pronounced like "Frisbee"-was changed to Brisby to avoid trademark problems with Wham-O, the company that makes America's favorite flying disk. The 1971 novel from which the book was adapted is called Mrs. A TOY COMPANY MADE THEM CHANGE THE MAIN CHARACTER'S NAME. Furthermore, it was produced in 30 months-half the time Disney's 'toon features took. The Black Cauldron, released in 1985, would cost $44 million. THE FILMMAKERS WORKED FASTER AND CHEAPER THAN THEY HAD AT DISNEY.ĭisney's The Fox and the Hound cost $12 million. They were frustrated by Disney's bureaucracy and assembly-line attitude, and they believed Disney was neglecting certain animation skills and techniques that would be vital in the years ahead, especially as their veteran artists-the legendary Nine Old Men-retired or died. In 1979, while Disney was in the middle of production on The Fox and the Hound, animators Don Bluth, John Pomeroy, and Gary Goldman left the company, joined by a handful of other members of the animation staff.
IT WAS MADE BY FORMER DISNEY ANIMATORS WHO WENT ROGUE. Here's a trove of information about everyone's favorite non-Disney animated classic. Released in the summer of 1982, at a time when Disney’s Animation Studio was struggling (these were the The Fox and the Hound/ The Black Cauldron years), The Secret of NIMH saw a group of traditional animators attempt to unseat Disney-or at the very least to rattle the company out of its complacency. It was like David and Goliath, except that David lost and motivated Goliath to try harder. But there have been occasional challenges to Disney's dominance over the years, none so dramatic as the one represented by Don Bluth and The Secret of NIMH. Disney has had a stranglehold on animated feature films ever since Walt and friends made the first one, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, in 1937.