Lilo & Stitch (2025) Disney/Sci-Fi-Comedy-Adventure RT: 108 minutes Rated PG (action, peril and thematic elements) Director: Dean Fleischer Camp Screenplay: Chris Kekaniokalani Bright and Mike Van Waes Music: Dan Romer Cinematography: Nigel Bluck Release date: May 23, 2025 (US) Cast: Maia Kealoha, Chris Sanders, Sydney Elizebeth Agudong, Zach Galifianakis, Billy Magnussen, Courtney B. Vance, Hannah Waddingham, Kaipo Dudoit, Tia Carrere, Amy Hill, Jason Scott Lee.
Rating: ***
I still have a sour taste in my mouth from the recent live-action remake of Snow White. What were they thinking? The world may never know and maybe that’s a good thing. I take a small measure of comfort in knowing audiences largely stayed away. There might be hope for us yet.
I didn’t have any strong feelings either way for the LA remake of Lilo & Stitch. I have no sentimental attachment to the 2002 animated original. I saw it once when it first came out and again a couple of weeks ago just to refresh my memory. I like it fine, but it doesn’t rise to the level of a Disney classic, at least not for me.
Given the studio’s track record for LA remakes, I didn’t set my expectations high for Lilo & Stitch. It looked like it might be fun, but looks can be deceiving. Imagine my surprise when I found myself enjoying it. It’s actually one of the better LA remakes of a Disney animated film. It wisely retains the original’s anarchic spirit with the titular alien being (Stitch for those who don’t know) wreaking havoc while learning a valuable lesson from a little girl (Lilo for those who don’t know). It’s not only funny; it has a lot of emotion with its message about the importance of family- i.e. “Ohana means family. Family means no one gets left behind.” Its emotional well runs deeper than the original. It’s a change that works in its favor.
By now, you’ve heard there are some story differences between the two versions. The one that’s being talked about the most is the elimination of the main antagonist Gantu. He’s been merged with Dr. Jumba (Galifianakis, The Hangover 1-3), the mad scientist who creates Stitch (known as “Experiment 626”) as a weapon of mass chaos. It gets him into big trouble with the United Galactic Federation on planet Turo. He gets in even deeper when 626 steals a police cruiser and heads to Earth. The Grand Councilwoman (Waddington, also on screens this weekend in Mission: Impossible- The Final Reckoning) orders Jumba to Earth to recapture the creature. She sends Earth expert Pleakley (Magnussen, No Time to Die) to help and keep an eye on the doctor.
Stitch (voiced again by the OG’s co-director Chris Sanders) lands on the Hawaiian island of Kauai where he wastes no time causing trouble. He literally crashes a wedding and gets run over by a tourist trolley before winding up in an animal shelter. That’s where he’s found by Lilo (newcomer Maia Kealoha), a lonely 6YO orphan being cared for by her big sister Nani (Agudong, At Her Feet) after their parents’ deaths. She’s the kid who doesn’t fit in. Some have argued that this character is on the autism spectrum and it could be true. In any event, she has no friends and has a tendency to cause trouble wherever she goes. She constantly tests Nani’s patience. She tries hard to make it all work, but it’s not enough to instill confidence in the social worker (Carrere who voiced Nani in the original) who thinks Lilo would be better off in foster care. She gives Nani a week to get it together or else.
ANYWAY, Lilo meets Stitch at the local animal center and falls in love with the wild blue “dog” right away. Stitch, who’s being pursued by Jumba and Pleakley now in human form, sees the human child as a means of protecting himself from his would-be captors. Lilo takes him home much to the annoyance of Nani who already has enough on her plate. She can’t even begin to imagine what lies in store next; namely, the CIA agent Cobra Bubbles (Vance, The Adventures of Huck Finn) who comes for Stitch after finding his crashed spaceship. Posing as a social services rep, he plans to capture the alien before the public finds out about him.
Nani gets more of a storyline in this Lilo & Stitch. She wants to go to college in San Diego to study marine biology, but she can’t because she feels obligated to care for Lilo now that they’re parents are gone. This is another change that makes this version a little better than the animated one. We understand her frustration better. I also like the addition of Amy Hill (she voiced the absent-minded shopkeeper in the OG) as a kindly neighbor who acts as a surrogate grandmother to the sisters. She’s also the grandmother of David (Dudoit), the fire dancer who likes Nani in that special way. Hill brings her usual spunk to the role.
I do believe Lilo & Stitch will be a hit, especially with the kiddies. That is, if their reaction at this morning’s showing is any indicator. They all seemed to love it. One little girl happily danced along to the closing music at the front of the theater. I can’t speak for all the adults in the theater, but my wife liked it. It made her tear up at the end. It is a touching movie with it themes about family and being there for them. It’s also quite funny at times although I think it could have done without the rude humor- a fart joke, really? The CGI is surprisingly good. I almost believed Stitch was a flesh-and-blood being. I can safely say it doesn’t need to seen in 3D so save the extra money for the large popcorn with free refills.
Kealoha is brand new to the scene. Lilo & Stitch is her acting debut. She’s a little spitfire, this one. She captures Lilo’s wild and adventurous spirit very well. Never once is she cloying or annoying. Agudong is great as big sis Nani. You can feel her love for Lilo even in the child’s worst moments. Galifianakis, considerably slimmer since his Hangover days, makes a good villain. Vance is fine as Agent Bubbles, but I miss Ving Rhames. Really, the whole cast does a fine job. I have no complaints in this area.
In general, I like Lilo & Stitch. Like the original, I don’t think it’s going to be regarded as a classic, not like Beauty and the Beast or The Lion King. It’s good, in fact it’s better than the original, but it doesn’t have that extra something that makes it special. It’s a nice time at the movies for the family. Your kids will have a blast.
