Next month, Fathom Events, Raven Banner Releasing and Swissploitation Films will unleash a bold, new take on Heidi, the 5-year-old Swiss girl who headlines Johanna Spyri’s 1881 novel of the same name. Titled Mad Heidi, this version picks up Heidi’s story years after the events of that novel, with our heroine now a few decades older, still in the Alps, and … well, let’s take a look at the just-released red-band trailer to see what she’s been up to.
Oh, yikes. This is a very different Heidi, indeed. Let’s take a look at the film’s official plot synopsis (via the good folks at Bloody Disgusting) to shed a bit more light on what Mad Heidi is up to:
“This wicked odyssey of blood and cheese puts a new spin on the classic tale of Heidi, finding our heroine (Alice Lucy) all grown-up and living an idyllic life in the Swiss Alps with her beloved grandfather (David Schofield) far above an increasingly-dystopian landscape presided over by Our Very Swiss Leader (Casper Van Dien) – a ruthless dictator bent on world domination through dairy.
But when her goat-herding lover (Kel Matsena) is brutally murdered by government thugs for distributing illegal cheese, Heidi embarks on a wild quest for vengeance that will bring her toe-to-toe against fierce female prison inmates, cheese-fueled Swiss super-soldiers, ninja nuns, and more, as she fights to take down the tyrannical regime and restore freedom to Switzerland.”
Co-directed by first-timers Johannes Hartmann and Sandro Klopfstein, Mad Heidi is headed to theaters for one night only next month – June 21st, to be exact (Those interested in catching this one on the big screen will want to head on over to Fathom Events to pick up tickets now; once they’re gone, they’re gone).
From the looks of things, Hartmann and Klopfstein’s film will more than deliver on its grindhouse aesthetic (this movie looks like it oughtta be programmed alongside Machete, Hobo with a Shotgun, and probably Eli Roth’s forthcoming Thanksgiving), and we’re very curious to find out how it all comes together. Stay tuned for more on Mad Heidi as further updates become available, folks.
