Mad Heidi Review from Raven Banner Entertainment!

Mad Heidi is an ambitious and energetic project which was successfully crowdfunded and put on hold by the covid pandemic. Mad Heidi looks like a million bucks (it was shot for well over 2 million actually), its vibrant style, and ultrviolence shines throughout. Not taking itself seriously but driving home that constant tongue in cheek vibe.

Mad Heidi is a fun over-the-top film delivered in the vein of films like Machete, Iron Sky and, Inglorious Basterds. It is quoted as being the first Swissploitation film (which is unlikely). It delivers on overacting, larger than life characters and ridiculous gory violence. All these aforementioned traits were no doubt intentional and encouraged by the filmmakers.

Heidi, played by the lovely Alice Lucy, lives with her father played by David Schofield (Gladiator, American Werewolf in London) in the Swiss alps. Heidi has a relationship with Goat Peter played by Kel Matsena. Goat Peter is a goat farmer selling goat cheese illegally going against the laws of the current ruling government. That government is controlled by Swiss cheese producing tyrant president Meili played by Casper Van Dien (Starship Troopers). Meili rules this cheese dystopia with an iron fist and equally hot iron fondue pot. 

Anyone who crosses Meili and especially those who are lactose intolerant are dealt with in brutal fashion (usually smothered in molten hot Emmenthal cheese from a fondue pot). Goat Peter gets caught peddling his goat cheese and is executed. Heidi gets word her lover is deceased and vows to bring down Meili but not before she is imprisoned herself. Tormented and tortured by the sadistic warden Fraulein Rottweiler played by Katja Kolm (Family Practice) and her right-hand enforcer Lutz played by Rebecca Dyson Smith (Blood Red Sky) and forced to partake in a bizarre traditional wrestling ceremony with the muscular Flora played by real life body builder Julia Föry (Pearl). 

To make matters worse, Heidi discovers Meili’s right hand man Kommandent Knorr played by Max Rüdlinger was responsible for her family’s deaths during a protest years ago. Only Heidi’s father made it out of the ordeal alive. Heidi forges ahead on her journey of vengeance which leads her to Helvetia. Helvetia played by Andrea Fischer-Schluthess, an ominous presence in the forest which teaches Heidi how to gain and use the skills to kill her adversaries. 

Mad Heidi is an aesthetically pleasing film, but its revenge plot does get side-tracked along the way with a bunch of different story arcs and sub plots. I gotta say the gore was well done but not as plentiful as I expected. It’s a foolish chaotic romp which pulls out all the stereotypical rhetoric and cliches you can associate with Switzerland. I’m fully aware this was the intention of the filmmakers. I heard they wanted to use Victorianox’s patented Swiss army knife in the movie but were denied so they snubbed the knife brand in a particular scene. A Swiss army knife is pulled out at Heidi during a battle sequence and she remarks “that’s not a weapon.“

Go into Mad Heidi expecting some slapstick violence, nudity, and over-the-top exaggerated performances and you shouldn’t be disappointed. The movie is eye candy, a mish mash of tongue in cheek material which some will appreciate, and others will scoff at. If dystopian revenge and villains you love to hate are your flavour you’ll get a kick out of this one.

Directed by: Johannes Hartmann, Sandro Klopfstein
Written by: Sandro Klopfstein, Johannes Hartmann, Gregory D. Widmer, Trent Haaga
Produced by: Valentin Greutert,
Cinematography by: Eric Lehner
Editing by: Jann Anderegg, Claudio Cea, Isai Oswald
Music by: Mario Batkovic
Special Effects by: Miria Germano, Dana Hesse, Tanja Koller, Claudio Raho, David Scherer, Daniel Steffen
Cast: Alice Lucy, Max Rüdlinger, Casper Van Dien, David Schofield, Kel Matsena, Almar G. Sato, Katja Kolm, Rebecca Dyson Smith, Julia Föry, Andrea Fischer-Schluthess
Year: 2022
Country: Switzerland
Language: Swiss German, English
Colour: Colour
Runtime: 1h 32min

Studio: Swissploitation Films, A Film Company
Distributor: Raven Banner Entertainment