Are you ready to have the most fun you’ll have watching a movie this year? Are you ready to dive head first into a new film genre that you didn’t know the world needed? Are you completely sober and of a pure mind? Well, if you answered yes to the first questions, then do I ever have a fun film experience for you! But if you said yes to the third question, then it is probably best if you stop reading and come back when you are in a downgraded state of sober.
If you like your movies loud, violent, absurd, brash and unable to give a fuck, then you are going to love the Swissploitation film Mad Heidi. What is a Swissploitation film you ask? That question is easily answered in 93 minutes. Mad Heidi follows in the footsteps of the grind house films that have come before it as first-time filmmakers Johannes Hartmann and Sandro Klopfstein, along with writing partner Gregory D. Widmer, took the famous children’s book Heidi and flipped it on its side.
Mad Heidi finds our beloved Swedish heroine all grown up living in the Swiss Alps with her grandfather, far above the landscape ruled by Our Very Swiss Leader- a cold-blooded dictator set on world domination by ridding the world of those who are lactose intolerant. When Heidi’s goat-herding lover, Goat Peter, is murdered by government henchmen for selling illegal cheese, she embarks on a wild quest for vengeance. Throughout her Journey, Heidi goes toe-to-toe with bodybuilding female prison inmates, ninja nuns, and cheese-fueled super-soldiers among others as she fights to restore freedom in Switzerland by defeating the country’s tyrant.
Mad Heidi was completely and purposefully crowdfunded. Johannes and Sandro were dead set on not having any studio interference take away from the vision of the film they wanted to present. The innovative tactic is paying off as the film’s profits will be placed back into the hands of the creators and backers. The film boasts intricate sets, impressive practical makeup and gore effects, and some of the most beautiful scenery one hasn’t seen since Midsommar. Mad Heidi is such a visually beautiful film that the Swedish Tourist Association should use clips from the film to lure visitors to their beautiful country side.
Mad Heidi doesn’t shy away at all from the type of film that it is and does not try to pretend it is anything else. In the opening seconds of the film, you learn how it was funded and that is was made entirely by people who have a great deal of love for film. The film is a wild rollercoaster ride from the beginning and does not let up until the credits roll. Newcomer Alice Lucy takes on the titular role with great fierceness and holds her own as she fights her way to get to President Meili played by Starship Troopers Casper Van Dien.
Every exploitation film you can think of is parodied in Mad Heidi. Goat Peter’s slick, pimp like demeanor represents the blaxploitation films of the 70s and mafia films of the same time frame are met as Peter sells some illegal cheese to some low level gangsters early in the film. All in all, Mad Heidi would be a perfect fit for a midnight screening at an independent theater or drive-in.
The laughs never stop during Mad Heidi except when someone’s head is blown apart, someone is fondue-boarded, and another poor soul is probed with a mustard covered sausage in their no-no zone. Mad Heidi is not for everyone, but if you have ever imagined what it would be like if Mel Brooks remade Quentin Tarantino’s Kill Bill films and set it in the Swiss Alps, then Mad Heidi is indeed for you.
Raven Banner Releasing and Swissploitation Films are excited to announce the North American digital and physical release of the modern grind-house epic Mad Heidi. The film is now available on Blu-ray, digital and cable VOD (including Prime Video, Amazon, Vudu, Bell and more) . The Blu-ray will be available in both a standard edition and a Limited Edition Extra Cheese Edition.
Steven McCash is the Lead Music Writer and Utility Man for SoBros Network. Steven is the host of the ‘Drinking With…’ podcast, and the pioneer of New Music Friday, highlighting each week’s new releases in the world of music in addition to the occasional live show review. He also pitches in as a Nashville lifestyle writer and football analyst (hence the ‘Utility Man’ title). Follow on Twitter: @MC_Cash75
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