Anthony Bergamini
Lilo & Stitch is a 2002 animated film from Walt Disney Pictures, about a little girl, Lilo, and her adorable, but very destructive new pet/alien, Stitch. As someone who was growing up at the time of this film’s release, I vividly recall the craze around everything that it had to offer. Not only did it spawn sequels and a TV Series, but the character of Stitch slowly became a staple of Disney marketing. Flash forward to 2025, Disney is gearing up to release a live-action feature film/remake of the original animated picture, likely trying to capture that lightning in a bottle.
Rewatching the original Lilo & Stitch, it is easy to see why it was so beloved to almost all audiences. For its target audience, kids, the film showcases a straightforward plot that is full of action and a relatable lead protagonist. For parents or any adult watching the film, those elements never feel like they are strictly targeted at children, with the film maintaining a mature tone. Even for a teenage audience, Lilo & Stitch has all the makings of a summer blockbuster, with its opening action sequence feeling straight out of a science fiction epic rather than an animated Disney movie. In almost all avenues, the film presents itself in a manner that can appeal to a wide range of filmgoers, using the classic, timeless approach to Disney storytelling to keep it under one package.
As an adult watching the film, one of the biggest takeaways is the very real and emotional story at the core of the film. As the film kicks off, it becomes apparent that Lilo is not an average little girl. She struggles to make friends and is constantly off doing her own thing, which sometimes leads to conflicts with her older sister and caretaker, Nani. It is later revealed that Nani has been doing her best to take care of Lilo ever since their parents died in a car crash. One of the core plot threads of the film is Nani struggling to make a safe and sustainable life for Lilo while a social worker, Cobra Bubbles is constantly lurking around waiting for her to make a mistake.
The idea of placing a plotline like this in a kid’s movie is a little bonkers if it were just written that way on paper; however, this is the kind of mature storytelling that makes the film timeless and understandable for anyone who has been in/knows of someone who has come from a broken home. This plotline also keeps the story of an alien coming to earth grounded, creating an avenue for this otherworldly creature to bond and relate to Lilo, and by extension the audience.
Speaking of Stitch, let’s talk a little about his story, and how this film makes him relatable even though he is an alien. The film opens on a Galactic Federation spaceship where it is explained that Stitch was illegally created by a mad scientist. The federation votes to destroy Stitch but are unable to do so because he is nearly indestructible. They instead decide to rocket him to a lone/bare planet where he won’t be able to cause any harm; however, Stitch breaks free and steals a ship that rockets to Earth. Stitch is assumed to be a dog by animal control and ends up playing the part while he attempts to disguise himself and hide from the federation. This is where he encounters Lilo, who adopts him. At face value, this seems like it could all be played for slapstick comedy; however, the writers approach it from a perspective where Stitch is feeling abandoned and alone like the way Lilo feels. This creates an opportunity for Lilo to inadvertently teach Stitch what it means to be part of a family and care about others, allowing this destructive ball of anger to become a relatable and understandable character that audiences can latch to. Yes, it helps that he is animated in a way that makes him look adorable, but the writers go beyond that to make him a fully fleshed out character that has an arc and growth.
When it comes to the lighter elements of the film, Lilo & Stitch is full of them. A lot of moments in the film are played for laughs, typically in a situational sense. A lot of this comes from the side-characters Dr. Jumba Jookiba, the mad scientist who created Stitch; and Agent Pleakley, an agent of the federation who seeks to protect “valuable” life on earth. These characters are tasked with capturing and returning Stitch, and for the most part, they act as the comic relief of the film as they constantly fall into antics where they barely miss their goal. It will be interesting to see how these characters are adapted for the live-action film, because one of the biggest elements of comedic relief comes from the very poor disguises that they where to appear as humans. From the looks of the trailer, it seems that these characters will be able to disguise themselves as humans, which has the potential to create a similar effect if done correctly.
