Lilo & Stitch
review by Bobby Blakey
For the last few years Disney has been on track to remake a lot of their animated features into live action films. They have met with mixed results but haven’t slowed them down at all with the latest upcoming Snow White being next to hit theaters. Now one of the more anticipated ones that has been getting some great promotions, Lilo & Stitch, is also getting ready to crash invade cinemas. Could this latest update deliver the chaotic fun of the animated film, or will it fail to become part of the family?
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Lilo & Stitch follows the wildly funny and touching story of a lonely Hawaiian girl and the fugitive alien who helps to mend her broken family. The film is directed by award-winning filmmaker Dean Fleischer Camp, with a screenplay by Chris Kekaniokalani Bright and Mike Van Waes, and stars Sydney Elizebeth Agudong, Billy Magnussen, Tia Carrere, Hannah Waddingham, Chris Sanders, with Courtney B. Vance, and Zach Galifianakis, and introducing Maia Kealoha.
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I know a lot of people didn’t feel like the trailers worked all that well for this film, but I wasn’t one of them. To me it seemed like the perfect type of story and idea that could translate well into live action. Much like the world of Sonic you have to obviously buy into the visuals at times, but on the whole, it delivers exactly what I thought and does the animated version justice.
The story is intact with some minor changes here and there with some that annoyed me at first but made sense for this film. The first is the change to Agent Cobra Bubbles and how they adapt him in the film and the aliens hunting Stitch. Bubbles is still here front and center, but it makes a lot more sense how they inject him into the story than what they did in the animated story although I would have loved to see Ving Rhames take on the live action role as well.
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The one I was initially most upset about was the change to Pleakley and Jumba once on Earth. They look great in alien form and kept the designs almost identical with all the aliens, but they change them up on Earth for the hunt. At first, I was feeling like it was a copout, but as it moves on it makes more sense and works for the live action better than had they stayed the same throughout. Have n fear they still get ample time in their “true” form so it all still works.
The complete omission of Captain Gantu was a disappointment as I love that character’s design, but I understand and would have likely crowded this version more than necessary. Outside of these changes the film sticks to the story with plenty of live action shots straight from the animated feature that will bring smiles to fans faces. It works so much better than you might think and I had a fun time with it.
The cast all do a good job with newcomer Maia Kealoha, an excellent casting for Lilo. She is so fun to watch, adorable and fully brings the character to life. It was fun getting to see some of the original cast including original David, Jason Scott Lee in a cameo and Tia Carrere in new prominent roe as well as Chris Sanders returning to voice Stitch himself.
I hope people give this film a shot as Stitch goes all in with his fun, destructive and loving behavior to create a story that is still about ohana and family leaves no one behind.
In addition to the film this release offers up bonus content including deleted scenes, bloopers, featurettes and more. Grab your copy of Lilo & Stitch available now on digital and on 4K, Blu-ray and DVD on August 26th from Disney.
