Paramount developing Rats of NIMH movie

[Roy Mustang]

Paramount is developing a new feature-film version of the award-winning children's tale Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH, which was previously adapted in 1982 by Don Bluth as the animated The Secret of NIMH, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Director Neil Burger (The Illusionist) is in talks to write the screenplay. Here's what the trade paper said:

Robert C. O'Brien's Rats of NIMH won the Newbery Medal in 1972 and has been a staple in children's bookstores and libraries since. The story centers on a mouse—the titular Mrs. Frisby, re-named Mrs. Brisby in the MGM movie—faced with a crisis when her son falls ill and she must move her family to escape a farmer's plow.

Mrs. Frisby enlists a group of former lab rats, whom she soon discovers run a highly evolved society, who possess advanced technologies and divide labor in the manner of a human community.

Link to story

[font="Book Antiqua"][color="Red"]Col. Roy Mustang[/color][/font]

[Etoh*the*Greato]

It was less than thirty years ago, and way ahead of it's time. Why do we need another? Don Bluth was one of the major proponents of challenging children emotionally, and considering the entertainment industry's current allergy to doing that, this will lose much of the impact of the original adaptation.

Fail.

[Cognitive Gear]

Please be good. Please be good. Please be good. Please be good. Please be good. Please be good. Please be good. Please be good. Please be good. Please be good. Please be good. Please be good.

[CrimsonRyu17]

Looooved the movie. Though I have my doubts about this. There's no telling what they may do with it.

[rocklobster]

I have my doubts too. Children's animation is too sugar-coated these days. We need more Bambi's mom deaths.

[Etoh*the*Greato]

Glad to know I'm in good company!

[Warrior 4 Jesus]

Loved the book, thought the movie was quite good. If they have to do a remake, I hope they do it well.

[Bobtheduck]

I just want a fully restored version of Bluth's movie on Bluray with interviews and commentary and stuff...

Forget a new movie, even if it means they're allowed to keep the names since the trademark dispute over "Frisby" is over... Don Bluth won't likely be topped by someone trying to cash in on Nostalgia...

[Maledicte]

Um, why?

and

Will it be 2d animated, 3d animated, or what?

[the_wolfs_howl]

Loved the book, hated the original movie. It was too much like Redwall. I mean, swords? No.

I'm skeptical about this one too, because my guess is it'll be CG, and only Pixar can pull off a really good CG movie anymore (besides Bolt). And an adaptation of that book would have to be handled very delicately, since as I remember the majority of the book was the rats' story about being experimented on.

[Maledicte]

And an adaptation of that book would have to be handled very delicately, since as I remember the majority of the book was the rats' story about being experimented on.

It would be interesting to see a 3d animated movie taking those plot developments into account. 2d animation did it plenty--Felidae, Plague Dogs, etc. I'd love to see 3d animation tackling heady subjects.

[K. Ayato]

I'm not sure whether to break out into cheers or deep sobs.

[Fish and Chips]

I have my doubts too. Children's animation is too sugar-coated these days. We need more Bambi's mom deaths.

Completely and irrevocably off topic, but Rock saying this with his current avatar made me increasingly thankful I wasn't drinking anything reading this thread.

[Warrior 4 Jesus]

SirThinks2Much, dang, Plague Dogs was very good but it has to be the most depressing animation I've seen in my life (even more so than Grave of the Fireflies). In Australia we have the un-cut version and it's even more intense.