The Secret of NIMH 2: Timmy to the Rescue

What’s the Story?

THE SECRET OF NIMH 2 follows the adventures of Timmy (voiced by Andrew Ducotte, then Ralph Macchio), one of the sons of the hero of the first movie, as he fulfills his own destiny as a hero to the rodents of NIMH. Now living in utopian Thorn Valley, the supersmart but peaceful rats that escaped from the evil testing laboratory, NIMH, learn that the institution has yet another horrid plan in store for them. This time, it's Timmy's job to help lead them out of danger. Timmy's future as the hero of Thorn Valley has been foretold by the rat prophet Nicodemus, and the movie follows his development from a scared runt of the litter to the cunning leader of the escape mission.

Is It Any Good?

In trying to recreate the magic of 1982's The Secret of NIMH, which was based on the Newberry Medal-winning book Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH, THE SECRET OF NIMH 2 reprises the characters but lacks the pacing and originality of the first story. While there is a good plot twist near the end, most of the movie is highly predictable.

The movie brings back popular characters like Justin (William Macy), the rat leader, and Jeremy the crow (Dom DeLuise). And there are new characters, like Jenny (Hynden Walch), the daughter of mice still trapped in NIMH. But it lacks the lush colored animation that made the first movie stand out more than 20 years ago. In fact, the animation seems amateurish. For example, as two animals conduct a back-and-forth conversation, their mouths and bodies move in unison.