they never explained the magical aspect of this movie. Where did the stone come from, etc.
Also, what was with Jenner.what was so important about not moving for him. he also was the only other person who knew about the stone's power. these were big plot holes.
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<they never explained the magical aspect of this movie. Where did the stone come from, etc. > first sentence
I might know.. i seem to remember a scene where Mrs. Brisby has almost fainted while they were moving her house. Anyway, she was wearing that big red stone ( i assume tthat's what you're talking about). As she was about to faint, she was kind of in a trance, and reaching for the red stone. AS she took hold of it, I think i remember hearing a voice-it might have been Nicodemus'- that said something like..'courage to the heart is very rare.. the stone has a power when it's there..' So maybe the stone was powerful when the person wearing it had courage? Whatever it was, the move worked out. Mrs. Brisby fainted after that, but she and her family were ok after they'd been moved, so i guess the stone helped her.
Perhaps the Stone was created by and for Nicodemus himself, to enhance and release latent Telekinetic or Psychic powers. It's made very clear at the opening of the film that Nicodemus is using the pen with his mind alone, and also seems to have a large psychic gift. Since we may assume that the serum given to the rats affected them each differently while bestowing a general boost of intelligence, it may be safe to say that not just anyone could use the Stone.
It would take a strong will and focus, as well as a latent ability to make full use of it. Nicodemus understood that Jenner's desire for power stemmed from fear, of the unknown in Thorn Valley, and also of those cleverer than he.
That fear and innate cruelty within Jenner's heart and mind would have provided more than enough focus for the Stone, even without any natural psychic talents.
He also knew that Mrs. Frisby's love for her children would activate the Stone, and save them in their hour of need.
This is why Nicodemus was willing to sacrifice himself to ensure that Jenner never got his hands on the Stone, and to make sure that the other rats would move on into Thorn Valley and begin to realize their true potential.
Well said, Vastarien202.
I agree.
"I'd say this cloud is Cumulo Nimbus."
"Didn't he discover America?"
"Penfold, shush."
Not to be a jerk/troll, but ultimately I don't think there are good answers to the questions asked by the OP. Even on the director commentary, Bluth can't really explain why he went with a magic stone, and his lead art director rakes him over the coals regarding it. So were left with a lot of speculation--here are some of my ideas (instead of trying to make a plot work that doesn't):
1. Bluth was trying to flex his muscles after leaving disney, and there's no doubt that he poured his love into the animation in this film. The problem is, were talking about rats on a farm. That's a whole lot of drab colors. Bluth took the little bit of color mentioned in the book and turns the rosebush into another emerald city. I suspect the ending was another opportunity to introduce a lot of colorful special effects.
2. The real ending to the story would have been more of that depressing 70's angle that just wasn't what the 80's had already become. Not too long before NIMH, Lucas had proved that you can make summer blockbusters by making bright, happy, high action films. NIMH however is at times ponderous, weighty, even philosophical. Bluth carefully trimmed a lot of that out, but ultimately that meant the ending no longer worked (plus, it might have been considered too dark for kids.) Instead, we have a magical happy ending that really is magical because Bluth just made it up while tossing the ending of the story.
3. This one is a bit of a stretch; but just consider other films being made at the time. I do think people on the team undoubtedly loved the original NIMH story, but remember that the rights had sat on the shelves for some years and it may be that Bluth very much wanted to do a different kind of film. One with more action and magic. When I consider elements like the owl/nicodemus connection that Bluth says he just made up on the fly because he thought it was cool (obviously paraphrased), it shows that Bluth was considering a very different film and the working plot was just a starting point.