Leave Heidi Alone! (Or rewatching a childhood favorite)

No, not he ever pregnant Heidi of Project Runway. The sweet, curly haired dimpled Heidi of my Saturday mornings:

When I was about 6 or 7, I loved Shirley Temple.  One would come on TV, or I'd find one on tape, and I'd watch them back to back if I could.  I wanted ringlet curls so badly I could taste it some days, and I desperately wanted to learn to tap dance.

So today, with the storm bands of Alex making the day so dreary, I felt a little nostalgic, and started watching Heidi on Netflix.

If you're unfamiliar with the story, orphaned Heidi is brought to live with her Grandfather by her Aunt Dete.  The old man is reluctant to have her, but Shirley's Heidi's kind nature and dimples win him over. Dete returns and takes Heidi to Frankfurt to be the companion of an invalid girl, Clara.  Clara's governess immediately hates Heidi and wants to get rid of her.  Meanwhile, Grandfather is on his way to Frankfurt to find Heidi and bring her back home where she belongs. If you've ever seen another Shirley Temple movie, or orphan in distress movie from this time period, you can figure out how it'll end.

Today was the first time I've watched it as an adult and it is a COMPLETELY different movie than I remember!

Childhood Memories	Adult Realizations
The Grandfather is a kindly old man	The Grandfather is a bitter old man isolated based on his unforgiving nature
Heidi's Aunt Dete is a mean woman	Dete should be arrested and put in jail for child abandonment and kidnapping
Heidi is a happy girl	Heidi is so desperate to have someone love her that she puts on a false face of cheeriness sometimes
Clara is a poor sick girl	Clara is a spoiled rich brat that refers to Heidi as if she were a puppy
The governess is a mean old woman	Why won't these women stop kidnapping Heidi!?!
Yeah, Heidi and Clara are friends!	Stupid Clara and her passive aggressive friendship! Heidi should have cut all ties with her

I do have to say that I enjoyed it almost as much as I did as a kid. It's pure escapist, utterly unrealistic, but happily ever afters are nice sometimes.