I'm as creeped out as the next person by rats, but they aren't what I'd call horror-movie material. If anything, this movie made them a lot cuddlier and likeable than I'd regard them in real life.
Bruce Davison plays his character like some kind of idiot savante. His over-acted nervous ticks got on my nerves. Oddly enough, for a guy who sometimes hammed it up, Ernest Borgnine wastes a good performance. He's pretty much the only believable character in this whole mess. Sondra Locke looks good and manages to get through a movie without coming across as a screeching harpy, which is an achievement for her.
If this was the undercard at the Friday drive-in let's hope it was paired with a good feature or the place would have emptied out early.