Movie - Series (5) When a store in Bad Ragaz exploded because of "Sew Torn"
In "Sew Torn", seamstress Barbara Duggen (Eve Connolly) accidentally stumbles across a drug deal that has gone bust. Her discovery culminates in her store exploding. The scene from the Swiss-American production was filmed in Bad Ragaz on Badstrasse.
Image: Keystone
The simple pub at the end of a row of houses in Bad Ragaz is now a bicycle storage facility. But the residents of the vacation resort well remember that this restaurant also exploded - during the filming of one of the last scenes in the movie "Sew Torn".
Image: Keystone
In "Sew Torn", seamstress Barbara Duggen (Eve Connolly) accidentally stumbles across a drug deal that has gone bust. Her discovery culminates in her store exploding. The scene from the Swiss-American production was filmed in Bad Ragaz on Badstrasse.
Image: Keystone
The simple pub at the end of a row of houses in Bad Ragaz is now a bicycle storage facility. But the residents of the vacation resort well remember that this restaurant also exploded - during the filming of one of the last scenes in the movie "Sew Torn".
Image: Keystone
The movie "Sew Torn" is set in the Tamina Gorge in the canton of St. Gallen; it was mainly filmed in Vättis and Bad Ragaz. The action film caused a legendary explosion - and made big waves.
16.01.2026, 06:30
SDA
Residents of the region and all those who know the Tamina Valley in St.Gallen are of course aware that when the protagonist Barbara Duggen (Eve Connolly) descends the stairs of her apartment in the American-Swiss film "Sew Torn - Threads of Crime" by Jung director Freddy Macdonald, she actually reappears in a different village. The scenes for the apartment were filmed in the small village of Vättis, while those for Barbara's fabric store (in the film, it is located on the first floor of her apartment) were shot in Bad Ragaz.
Blood and a suitcase on the street
In the fictional story, in which villages have no names, seamstress Barbara Duggen accidentally stumbles across a broken drug deal in the mountains - bikers, pools of blood and an ominous suitcase on the road out of the valley. This sets things in motion.
The plot of the feature film, which was shown in Swiss-German cinemas last fall, is fast-paced. It ends with Barbara's store exploding: in one of the oldest streets in the spa town of Bad Ragaz, Badstrasse.
While in "Sew Torn" it is the protagonist's sewing studio and store, in reality it was actually a wool store until a few years ago. Today, the premises at the end of a row of houses houses a bicycle store and a small fitness room that belongs to the hotel opposite.
In the hotel lobby, Esos Samardzic, the operator of "Esos Hotel Quelle" and its grill, points to the massive crockery cupboard next to reception, where a photo is displayed behind Plexiglas: it shows the store opposite, the awning is unrolled, there is a light blue car on the sidewalk and "Sew Torn" in squiggly lettering.
Yes, some of the crew members have stayed with him, says the hotel owner. That's all we can get out of him. But on his website you can read: "We are also proud to have featured in the Swiss-American film Sew Torn, adding a touch of cinematic legacy to our storied walls." Loosely translated: "We are proud that the movie 'Sew Torn' has brought a touch of Hollywood to our historic walls."
The highlight was the explosion
Alexandra Zaugg puts it less dramatically just a few doors down. She runs "GWunderBoutiquA.Zaugg", a store that sells Swiss and European fashion. "We followed everything and were excited," she says. The historic road leading into the Tamina Gorge was partially closed, she recalls. Everything was cleared again for the Postbus. The highlight was the explosion, says the store owner, who had to cover her store with black tarpaulins during filming.
In the movie, this explosion takes place towards the end. In real life, it marked the end of filming. A Plexiglas box was specially built for the chief filmmaker Sebastian Klinger - so that he could be close enough to the explosive scene without needing a tripod and instead filming by hand.
The residents were no longer allowed out of their houses, but it was still exciting. One of Alexandra Zaugg's neighbors was also filming. The windows of the store opposite shattered in one of the explosions; they were made of thin glass. "It was exciting. For example, to see Hollywood fire, which is completely harmless."
On closer inspection, even outsiders have to admit: The yellow house with the red shutters was perfect for the somewhat quirky story with few staff. Axel Zimmermann also finds Badstrasse "photogenic". The teacher was the mayor of Pfäfers, Vättis and Valens at the time when filming took place over a few weeks. He is one of the biggest fans of "Sew Torn".
Standing ovations for the film
Half the village came to the preview in the Vättis gymnasium: 200 out of 400 people turned up. The head of the municipality had personally dropped the flyers into the letterboxes. "It was the biggest event in my eight years as mayor." There were several applause scenes and a standing ovation at the end, he says: because of the landscape pictures, the well-known facades or the revival of the Calanda restaurant in the middle of the village, even if only for a few hours.
The people of Vättner were so taken with the film that they made "Sew Torn" the main theme of the carnival that followed the filming. People dressed up like the characters in the movie, they built the seamstress's car out of cardboard, reminiscent of a Mini, and they spoke American.
The fact that the valley community itself was so excited after the filming was completed is mainly thanks to Sebastian Klinger. The man from St.Gallen is something of a hero in the region, which is still part of the canton of St.Gallen. For "Sew Torn", he not only acted as lead cameraman, but also as location scout for the predominantly American crew. As a result, he spun a beautiful web across the valley during the location scouting, the filming itself and the post-production. Not just like that, but with charm and friendliness.
Without Sebastian, Axel Zimmermann confirms, firstly this film would not have come out so well and secondly the film would not have resonated until the carnival - especially as the people were "only" in the role of spectators. A few extras were only needed for the restaurant scene.
However, neither Bad Ragaz, which was already popular with tourists, nor Vättis have become more prominent since "Sew Torn". And the Tamina Valley has always been a popular destination for tourists. Now, however, the Postbus transports guests through Bad Ragaz's Badstrasse, most of whom are unaware that the windows of the store, whose door now simply says "bicycle", have already exploded.
*This text by Nina Kobelt, Keystone-SDA, was realized with the help of the Gottlieb and Hans Vogt Foundation.
