Mad Heidi is, well, a lot. It’s part homage to 60s and 70s experimental cinema, including grindhouse and Blaxploitation films. It’s a movie that should be seen at a drive-in at 2 am on a Saturday night. Its plot makes little to no sense, but that doesn’t deter the movie from being a whole lot of gory and goofy fun.

Directed by Johannes Hartmann and Sandro Klopfstein, the film begins with an announcement that it was totally crowdfunded, without any interference from a corporation or big studio. There’s something to be said about that and likely the reason that the movie has such a wild and raw sort of energy to it. The Swedish feature was created totally out of love. And yes, the plot is utterly absurd. Sweden has become a dystopian hellscape, ruled by the iron-fisted President Meili (Casper Van Dien). He cracks down by controlling well, cheese, and yes, the plot has more holes than Swiss cheese, but that’s beside the point. This is a gnarly revenge tale and little more than that. It’s a sugar high and 90 minutes of gruesome goodness.

The fascists face resistance from an unlikely hero, farm girl Heidi (Alice Lucy). The brutes first kill her boyfriend Goat Peter (Kel Matsena), after they find out he’s selling dairy product illegally. They then go after Heidi’s grandpa, Alphoi (David Schofield). Both of these incidents are a 10 on the gore level and likely would receive four stars from drive-in critic Joe Bob Briggs. These events lead to Heidi’s arrest, and she faces horrible treatment at the Department of Corrections. They try to break her, but ultimately fail. Heidi enacts her revenge. First, however, she trains and sparks a rebellion among the villagers.

Silly plot points and corny one-liners aside, for a film that was totally crowdsourced, it looks dang good. Hats off to cinematographer Eric Lehner on that front. The early shots of the Swedish countryside, near Heidi’s home, especially look great. Further, Lucy does a good enough job as the lead, and her character is a sort of everywoman that most people should find relatable. That said, most of the villains are one-note and not all that memorable, including President Meili. This is a shame considering Heidi is a pretty cool protagonist.

The film’s major flaw is that it feels like a mash-up of so many different films and genres. It’s part Mad Max, part 70s grindhouse, and even a little bit of kung-fu. The influences are evident, but by flashing them so loudly, it makes the film feel at times like it’s all over the place. A little more focus would have benefited this feature. The second half also sags a bit, despite the tight runtime overall.

Mad Heidi is a whole lot of dumb fun. It’s the type of movie to watch during one of these hot summer nights with pizza, beer, and friends. It was made with a plenty of love and independence, and that’s clear from the outset. All hail Heidi, the Swissploitation queen.

6.5 Out of 10