Back in 1971, authorRobert C. O’Brienreleased “Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH”, a Newbery Award-winning tale that would inspire two additional stories (penned by his daughterJane Leslie Conley) and a cult-classic animated film,The Secret of NIMH, directed byDon Bluthin 1982. Now, the rats are back thanks toRats of NIMH, a hybrid live-action/animated feature film adaptation of the beloved tale.
Varietyreports that VFX wizJames Madiganwill be making his directorial debut withRats of NIMHfor MGM. Madigan, who recently wrapped directing the second unit on theJason StathamthrillerMeg, comes from a VFX supervisor background in TV and features. His award-winning VFX work includes HBO’sRome, for which he won a Primetime Emmy and two Visual Effects Society awards, alongside work onIron Man 2andThe Da Vinci Code. He’ll next tackle the tale of a group of lab rats recruited to save a woodland family of field mice inRats of NIMH.Daniel BobkerandEhren Krugerare on board as producers, along with MGM’sCassidy LangeandJon Glickman;Michael Bergis writing the script.
For many, the most fascinating aspect of theRats of NIMHmythology might center around the anthropomorphic rats who possess an unusual understanding of electricity, machinery, and even a little bit of sorcery. For me, however, the really interesting twist on the story was the reveal that NIMH isn’t some sort of mythical talisman or ancient, archaic order, it’sa very real scientific research organization. The fact that the rats were experimented on by scientists of NIMH and managed to escape their cages to start an advanced civilization of their own (under a rosebush) acts as background knowledge to the plight of the field mice and the heroic and villainous actions of the title characters. That’s some top-level world-building.The Secret of NIMHwill always remain a classic, but I’m quite excited to see what Madigan can do with the mythology and today’s filmmaking technology.
For the uninitiated, here’s the trailer for the 1982 animated film,The Secret of NIMH:
