In 1982 MGM/United Artists released The Secret of NIMH, a superb movie with vivid, detailed animation that often uses warm and striking colors to enhance mood. The movie is based upon the novel and largely follows its main plot and characters. Mrs. Frisby's name is changed to Mrs. Brisby, but other characters' names remain the same. To portray the humanness of the animals, the mice and rats all wear clothes, and Mrs. Brisby's house is complete with furniture.

The horror of animal experimentation is increased in the movie as Nicodemus describes "the most unspeakable tortures to satisfy some scientific curiosity." The movie also presents a clearer difference between good and evil.

Jenner is consumed with a "lust for power." He determines to "take what you can, when you can," and remains in the rat colony, using the ploy of moving Mrs. Brisby's house to...