The plot and its center on the film's leading man, Paul Harris, a divorced high school teacher and basketball coach and his interactions during a killer rat infestation with a health department inspector, Kelly Leonard, a high school cheerleader, Trudy White, his friend a professor and rat expert, Dr. Louis Spenser, and his students.

Giant rats the size of small dogs living in mountains of grain full of steroids are rendered homeless when Kelly orders it to be burned down.

Paul telephones his friend, Louis, who instantly concludes that the steroid feed had spawned a new breed of 'super-rat' that had migrated into the sewers in search of food.

[2] Originally a British-set fiction novel, Deadly Eyes was instead set in Toronto, Canada, with scenic shots in the subway tunnels and snowy streets.

Despite its Canadian setting, promotional posters sometimes featured images of a New York City skyline, complete with the then-iconic Twin Towers of the World Trade Center.

"[4] The film also has a 29% on Rotten Tomatoes, considered a poor critical reception, with Jeff Beck of Examiner stating, "with its overly-familiar story and a group of characters that you merely hope will soon become rat food, Deadly Eyes makes for a somewhat tedious viewing experience", and Mike McGranaghan of Aisle Seat criticizing the film's "underdeveloped characters and stilted dialogue.

"[5] Despite this, Deadly Eyes has since received a cult following, with fans praising the acting of Scatman Crothers, the Chuck McDermott songs and the distinct Canadian setting, as well as the unintentional comedic aspects; Paul Freitag-Fey of Daily Grindhouse stated, "a goofy film, but one that's never dull and certainly entertaining enough to warrant the recent occasional cult reputation it's built."

"[6] A 2002 remake of Deadly Eyes titled The Rats was written by Frank Deasy and directed by Child's Play franchise writer John Lafia, set in New York City.