Mad Heidi Movie, Exploitation Cinemas’ Greatest

Released in 2022, Mad Heidi adorns every inch of its 92-minute runtime in cinematic name drops and Swiss stereotypes. The central character of Heidi originates from a classic children’s book from 1880 (well, loosely anyway.) Heidi lives with her Grandfather in a dystopian totalitarian-run Swiss Alps. Within the fascist government regime being lactose intolerant is the worst crime imaginable. Advertising in the country heavily promotes being able to dob in anyone who doesn’t either like cheese or can’t eat it. Much in the same way, one would report to anonymous tip-off lines for reporting criminals. Cheese reigns supreme in this crowd-funded endeavor by filmmakers Sandro Klopfstein, Johannes Hartmann, and Gregory D. Widmer.

Along with firmly recognizable Swiss favorites like Toberlones, accordions, Absinthe, and Swiss army knives, Mad Heidi throws in one-liners made famous by big films from all around the world. References to Crocodile Dundee, Scarface, Apocalypse Now, Robocop, and loads of other scenes styled or inspired by other famous movies pepper the ridiculous nature of the black comedy movie’s makeup. In the opening scenes if you don’t recognize that the Sound of Music has been heavily borrowed from, then most of what happens in this title will probably sail right over your head.

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Initial introductions to Heidi and her Grandfather play out a dangerous situation. Heidi’s only true love Goat Peter has been quietly smuggling his cheese. As troops move in and assassinate him in the street to set an example, Heidi can’t contain her grief and is escorted to prison for her affiliation with one of the nation’s long list of cheesy offenses. Mad Heidi starts strong. The aesthetic is silly and sexually gratuitous but overtly fun.

Once inside the prison however there is a long wait for what everyone watching is waiting for. We came for the carnage, revenge, and all-out war promised on the poster. Despite being introduced to Klara in the prison van, a Japanese sidekick alongside platonic wrestling matches between inmates there is a whole lot of downtime to reverse the enthusiasm of the first quarter.

Fight scenes in the jail are somewhat anemic. Heidi’s character arc from mousy innocence into an axe-wielding gladiator is slow to come. Somewhere between getting her head flushed daily and finding the nerve to fight back, Heidi’s transformation is unimpressive. But while we wait for her eventual epic showdown Mad Heidi does work hard to show you how much thought was put into the universe-building, scripting, and spectacular set pieces.

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Pervy politicians are rife in the over-the-top narrative built entirely on satirical propaganda. There is a ploy being devised by officials at the top to outwit the French by weaponizing a new strain of dangerously potent high-lactose cheese. The jokes are hit-and-miss. However, they should be regarded with the props they deserve. Some of the more memorable efforts were seeing prisoners get waterboarded with cheese, another succumb to death by chocolate (Toblerone to be precise), and some sexual exploits involving hotdogs and mustard.

Mad Heidi is rated

3 obedient lactose fuelled soldiers out of 5

Mad Heidi Cast

• Directors Johannes Hartmann and Sandro Klopfstein
• Writers Sandro Klopfstein, Johannes Hartmann and Gregory D. Widmer
• The cast of Mad Heidi 2022
  • Alice Lucy
  • Max Rüdlinger
  • Casper Van Dien

Watch Mad Heidi Streaming Online For Free

Mad Heidi is available to stream from the title’s official website. On the website, you can also watch the Mad Heidi trailer in several different languages. Along with a special price, there are plenty of links for other ways to watch the movie as well as links to merch and where to see the movie in theatres. For more direct ways to watch check your favorite “where to watch” film aggregator. Mother of Movies like JustWatch.com.