The Secret of NIMH (2025) – A Legacy Reawakened
Genre: Animated Fantasy | Adventure | Family
Directed by: Brad Bird
Voice Cast: Emily Blunt, Dev Patel, Benedict Cumberbatch, Florence Pugh, and Ken Watanabe
In a dazzling, hand-drawn/CG hybrid animation style, The Secret of NIMH (2025) is a bold reimagining of the beloved 1982 classic — not just a remake, but a continuation of the epic tale. Decades after Mrs. Brisby’s heroic journey to save her family, the story returns to the mysterious world of intelligent animals, long-buried secrets, and a dark science experiment that refused to be forgotten.
Thorn, a young mouse voiced by Florence Pugh, lives quietly with her family near the edge of what was once the Fitzgibbons’ farm. Curious and headstrong, Thorn has always felt out of place — faster than other mice, more intelligent, and haunted by strange dreams of glowing red eyes and metallic cages. Unbeknownst to her, she is the granddaughter of Mrs. Brisby — and her blood carries the legacy of NIMH.
After her brother is injured by a mysterious predator in the forest — a mutated, scarred rat unlike anything they've ever seen — Thorn sets out to find help. Her search leads her to the fabled hidden city of Thorn Valley, now overgrown and silent. The great society of rats has vanished... or so it seems.
There she meets Aegis (voiced by Dev Patel), a weary, brilliant young rat who is one of the last descendants of the original NIMH survivors. He reveals that NIMH — the National Institute of Mental Health — never stopped experimenting. In fact, the Institute has returned, more secretive and dangerous than ever, working on a new project codenamed Genesis — an effort to create hyper-intelligent animals as soldiers.
Thorn learns that her grandmother, Mrs. Brisby, once stopped NIMH’s advance by leading the rats to freedom and helping them form a peaceful society. But in the shadows, NIMH has been perfecting genetic modification. The monstrous creature that injured her brother is one of their escaped test subjects — a once-peaceful rat named Mordax, now turned savage.
Haunted by visions and guided by clues hidden in Brisby’s old journal — now in the possession of Nicodemus's last apprentice, Sage (voiced by Ken Watanabe) — Thorn embarks on a journey to awaken the last of the resistance. Alongside Aegis, and a mysterious crow named Kuro (voiced by Benedict Cumberbatch), she must rally survivors from the fractured colonies of intelligent animals to stop NIMH’s final plan: a mass re-capture operation of all sentient animals for global experimentation.
The film explores generational courage, identity, and sacrifice. Thorn must grapple with who she is — not just a small field mouse, but the heir to a hidden war. She learns of her grandmother’s bravery, the sacrifice of Jonathan Brisby, and the complex choices the rats once made between peace and power.
Through a powerful connection with Mordax, she discovers that NIMH's true cruelty lies not just in what it does to bodies — but what it takes from minds: memories, compassion, and will.
In the thrilling climax, Thorn and the reawakened rat alliance launch a daring raid on a hidden underground NIMH facility beneath the forest. With mechanical guardians, brain-linked drones, and mutated creatures guarding the lab, the final battle is both high-tech and heart-wrenching.
Thorn confronts Dr. Valen (voiced by Emily Blunt), the cold and brilliant scientist behind Genesis, who believes the only future for animals is servitude through enhancement. But Thorn, using her intelligence and empathy, turns Mordax back to sanity, proving that the soul cannot be engineered.
Using Brisby’s necklace — a relic of Nicodemus’s magic-infused technology — Thorn overloads NIMH’s systems and brings the facility down, freeing the remaining captives.
In the aftermath, the animals rebuild Thorn Valley — not as a secret society, but as a beacon of peace and cooperation between species. Thorn becomes a new leader, bridging the wisdom of the past with the vision of the future.
As she places her grandmother’s necklace beside a carved statue of Mrs. Brisby, the forest glows — alive with the hope of a new dawn.
"Courage is not measured by size, but by the heart that carries the light."
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