The New Adventures of Heidi (1978) Reviews

• Katy Kurtzman as Heidi

  cultfilmfreaksdotcom2012-02-25

  In one of the most wonderfully bizarre made for television musicals ever filmed, Katy Kurtzman plays a modern day Heidi. With the signature blond pigtails, she frolics throughout the mountainside with her grandfather, played by Burl Ives, who's losing his sight. What they really want is to live together without a care in the world: and other than a bearded psychopath lurking in the shadows, hilltop life is downright peachy. But when Grandpa gets lost in a thunderstorm, Heidi travels with a poor little rich girl to a mansion in the big city – and here's where the movie takes a bad turn. But don't blame our lovely little sky-eyed heroine. Psycho actor John Gavin's role as the rich girl's neglectful father ruins not only the whimsical pace, but takes Heidi out of the story for tedious pockets of downtime. Yet overall, despite the camp value, young Katy Kurtzman turns in an amazing performance, especially scenes where she's crying or wishing for the life she may never regain. Her eclectic bouquet of expressions, ranging from contented to ecstatic to woebegone to hysterical, makes some of the other stuff – reminiscent of an eerie dream – not matter. It's the title character that counts... It's her adventure! For More Reviews: www.cultfilmfreaks.com