Lilo and Stitch
Starring Maia Kealoha, Chris Sanders and Sydney Elizabeth Agudong
PG
3.75/5
A live-action remake of the 2002 animated classic, Lilo and Stitch is a silly, charming but poignant children’s movie.
Experiment 626, a furry, mischievous alien creature, crash-lands in Hawaii and is adopted by a rebellious girl named Lilo (Maia Kealoha), who names him Stitch.
I haven’t seen the original Lilo and Stitch, so I watched the remake with fresh eyes and found it a cute, energetic and endearing film. Kealoha makes a great debut as Lilo, a troublemaker with a good heart, and Stitch has a satisfying (if truncated) arc of reining in his own chaotic impulses and truly looking out for his new family.
The humour is broad but not overly simplistic, the kinetic action scenes make frequent use of physical comedy, and the film is suffused with respect for Hawaiian culture and beautiful seaside cinematography.
The Lilo and Stitch remake is directed by Dean Fleischer Camp, who directed the delightful stopmotion-infused mockumentary Marcel the Shell with Shoes On.
Tia Carrere, who played Lilo’s older sister and guardian Nani in the original film, returns as Mrs. Kekoa, a hapless social worker assigned to Lilo and Nani’s case.
Many Lilo and Stitch fans were outraged by the remake splitting up Lilo and Nani (Sydney Elizabeth Agudong) by the end, but I think this remake makes a good case for family bonds still existing when you’re apart.
I do think I sided with Nani’s need for independence more than the film intended, as I sympathised far more with her than her bratty sister and their rampaging pet, and Stitch’s redemption feels backended in the somewhat rushed conclusion.
A heartwarming, emotionally-mature family movie that needs a better-paced ending and a less annoying middle, Lilo and Stitch played at the Memorial Hall in Healesville.
