A social misfit, Willard is made fun of by his co-workers, and squeezed out of the company started by his deceased father by his boss. His only friends are a couple of rats he raised at home, Ben and Socrates. (And their increasing number of friends) However, when one of them is killed at work, he goes on a rampage using his rats to attack those who have been tormenting him.
Written by
Brian W Martz
Plot Synopsis:
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Willard Stiles (Bruce Davison) is a pleasant but lonely young man who is unable to relate well to other people, particularly to his aging mother, Henrietta Stiles (Elsa Lanchaster) with whom he lives in a run-down mansion, and to his boss, Mr Al Martin (Ernest Borgnine), who stole the business from Willard's father several years before. At the office Willard is constantly belittled by Martin, finding understanding from Joan Simms (Sondra Locke).

At home there is the celebration of his birthday, Charlotte Stassen (Jody Gilbert) and the rest of his mom's friends nag him about being more aggressive and going for an executive job, although Henrietta thinks that he wouldn't have been able to take charge of the business. He is nagged by his mother, particularly to kill some rats she has seen in their backyard. In the process of exterminating the rats, Willard saves them and finds as he feeds and plays with them that he can train the animals, by feeding them, and setting himself in their instincts as a rescuer. He baits the rats onto a pillar in the center of a well, and removes the wood bridge that they crossed. Then, as he fills the well, they are frantic, and he replaces the wood bridge; thus he cements their allegiance, and, in effect communicates with them. Meanwhile, Charlotte appears to take care of Henrietta, who falls sick and is an annoyingly meddlesome woman.

The mother rat, whose life Willard saved, brings one of her off-spring to him. Willard learns that through Socrates, as he has named his pet, he can order the others in the pack to do his bidding, except for the mischievous Ben, who occasionally disobeys. Willard tests the rats' obedience by disrupting a dinner party Martin is hosting and to which he has not been invited.

When Willard's mother dies, leaving him with the heavily mortgaged house, he uses the rats to help him steal money from one of his company's customers. Willard has begun the habit of taking Socrates and Ben to the office and letting them hide in the storeroom where one day they are discovered.

Idiot but wealthy customer Walter T. Spencer (Alan Baxter) is taking out 8,000 dollars for a holiday. Willard wants to steal that money and uses his rats to scratch the door. Walter's Wife (Sherri Presnell) hears the scratching, but the rats stop when he tells them so.

Mr. Martin visits Willard's home to buy it, but Willard will play absent. Meanwhile, Ben doesn't want to stay in the cellar, he wants to stay at Willard's bed. He pushes him away. Finally, Willard decides to take Ben to the office, only if he keeps completely silence.

Mr Martin tells Joan to persuade Willard to sell his mansion to him, but she refuses to betray him. Joan gives her notice, as it was only a temporary job. Mr. Martin gives Willard thirty-day notice before dismissal. The annoying secretary, Alice Rickles (Joan Shawlee) screams when she sees Ben. Mr Martin attacks Socrates with a stick. This affects Willard deeply, and Ben watches Socrates, the beautiful white hamster, die while hiding away. Mr Martin feels on top of the world and that night he will stay with Alice hooking up. Willard tells Ben that there wasn't anything he could do, but Ben stares at him accusingly.

Willard takes him home. There, he speaks to his late mother's photograph. That night, Willard takes tens of rats to Mr Martin's office. Willard appears at the office threshold to threaten him.

That night Willard returns with Ben and an army of rats and confronts Martin who is attacked and murdered by the animals. Mr Martin is nervous about the rats. He tries to deny having stolen the business, killed the mother or wanting to buy the house. Willard attacks Al Martin with a stick, but he loses the fight. Ben saves him by jumping to Mr Martin's arm and biting him. Finally, Willard tells the rats to kill Martin up. In the confusion, Mr Martin falls from the window. Ben looks for approval but Willard locks the rat in the office and returns home. Willard seems to have second thoughts about it, as he says "Goodbye Ben" and goes home to close all entrances to the rats and kills the rats remaining in their cages by drowning them in his home pond. It is implied that he buries Mr Martin there.

Willard goes out with Joan, saying that there are two people who changed his life: his friend Socrates and her. Willard wants to begin over. He notices Ben staring at him. Joan notices his strange behaviour. Willard realises that his mansion has been invaded by rats, so he has to get put her on a taxi. In the kitchen, Ben bites Willard, who tries to make a deal with him. Willard tries to trick Ben into eating poison. Ben realises the trick and calls for reinforcements. Willard tries to attack him with a broom.He encloses himself in the cellar, but all the rats break him and jump on top of him until he is killed.

While Willard is having dinner with Joan, the angry Ben suddenly appears. Willard rushes the girl from the house and then faces Ben for the startling climax of the film.

The surprise box office success of this film would inspire a slew of animal-themed horror films in the early 1970s.
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According to Ernest Borgnine's autobiography, they offered him a choice of a higher salary or a percentage of the box office. Borgnine chose a higher salary.
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According to TV guide during the period, Ernest Borgnine had to overcome a fear of rats prior to filming.
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Bruce Davison had a rat placed on his shoulder as part of his audition.
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The scenes with the rats took upwards of thirty takes to get right.
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The location for the Stiles family home is the Higgins-Verbeck-Hirsch Mansion in the Windsor Square neighborhood of Los Angeles. This was only the second feature film to shoot on the premises. It was built in 1902 for Illinois grain magnate Hiram Higgins at its original location on Wilshire Blvd. at Rampart St. In 1924, the home's new owner, interior designer Howard Verbeck, had it cut into three sections and trucked to its present location on S. Lucerne Blvd. just north of Wilshire. After the Great Depression, it fell into disrepair over a half century of neglect. During this time, it was used as a retirement home for nuns, a mission, a rooming house for aspiring actors, and various offices. In 1986, Perry and Peggy Hirsch rescued the historic mansion and spent years restoring it. In 1988 it was designated Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument No. 403.
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This film was the first theatrical production from Bing Crosby Productions (BCP) since its purchase by Cox Broadcasting in 1968. By 1971, Bing Crosby was no longer associated with BCP, which had produced a number of pictures during the 1940s and 1950s.
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This went into production as "Ratman's Notebooks", the title of the novel on which it is based.
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The final film appearance of Almira Sessions.
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The house used as the Stiles family home was also used in the films Waxwork (1988) and Witchboard (1986). It has since been retired as a filming location.
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Bruce Davison and Sondra Locke were dating in real life at the time the movie was made in 1970. They were never together publicly as a couple because Locke was married.
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The film's Spanish title is 'La Revolución de las ratas', meaning 'The Revolution of the Rats'.
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Announced under the title "Ratman's Notebooks", the title of the novel on which it is based.
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According to Ernest Borgnine, during filming of his character's death scene, he was smeared with peanut butter to attract the rats so that it looked like they were attacking him.
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Early in the movie, Willard plans on drowning the rats, apparently not knowing that rats are capable swimmers. The animals would have easily swam across the pool from the 'island' and escaped.
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Toward the end of the movie when Willard is in the kitchen with Ben preparing to poison the rats you can see the image of the rat wrangler putting Ben on the kitchen counter in the reflection of the glass cabinet.
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When Willard goes to the sink to add water to the poison, you can see the rat wranglers shadow as he reaches to remove Ben from the center island.
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When Joan gives Willard the cat Chloe as a pet, she tells him that female cats are good company. Chloe was played by a male.
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