Lilo & Stitch Review: A Worthy Family Movie, But The Original Remains Unmatched

Another month, another Disney live-action remake — and this one is among the most recent ones yet. The animated "Lilo & Stitch" came out in 2002 and has been remade as a live-action movie 23 years later. As a result, the remake seems like it was made for those in Generation Z or younger. Those of us who are older and still have fond memories of seeing the original will find that the live-action version isn't different enough to make it a must-see. That said, there are some key differences. Some I loved, some I was less enthusiastic about; and while these things ultimately don't change the overall story, they may help determine whether you feel it's worth seeing.

But first, if you haven't seen it, the story is a touching tale of a family and the alien that comes into it. Experiment 626 (Chris Sanders, who also did the voice of Stitch — and co-wrote and co-directed the original) was made by the mad scientist Jumba (Zach Galifianakis) to be an indestructible killing machine, and because of that, 626 and his creator are dragged before the Grand Councilwoman (Hannah Waddingham) to face judgment. But 626 is also very smart, and as a result, he escapes and takes an intergalactic space cruiser to Earth, specifically to the Hawaiian islands. While the Grand Councilwoman would like to take out the whole planet, fortunately Pleakley (Billy Magnussen) is there to inform her that Earth is a wildlife preserve for mosquitoes. So she sends Jumba and Pleakley to go capture 626.

Experiment 626, however, has been taken to an animal shelter because he looks like he may be a dog — or something. That's where Lilo (Maia Kealoha), a 6-year-old girl whose parents have died and whose sister, Nani (Sydney Elizebeth Agudong), is struggling to raise her, finds him. And when he sees Jumba coming for him, 626 willingly goes with the young girl. That's how he and Lilo first come together, and she gives him the name Stitch. Though Stitch is unruly and seems to ruin everything he touches, Lilo has a soft spot for him, and eventually the chaotic alien learns a thing or two about family.

Though the basic story is the same as the original, something that was only lightly addressed in the animated version was Nani's hopes and dreams — but in this one, they're more front and center. Nani wants to go to college, and her neighbor Tūtū (Amy Hill), who happens to be the mother of Nani's kinda-sorta boyfriend David (Kaipo Dudoit), won't let her forget it. Similarly, when Nani searches for a job, surfing isn't there to make her feel better like in the original; it's there to be a solution to her problem. Lilo presents Nani with a flyer about getting a job in surfing, and she excels. While the sequence has the same music as the one in the animated version, this version is more empowering for Nani.

Also, alien technology has improved vastly since the first "Lilo & Stitch," and this time, Pleakley and Jumba are able to make themselves look human while they're on Earth. From a practical standpoint, this obviously makes things much easier for a live-action production, but it also gives Zach Galifianakis and Billy Magnussen some moments of silly comedy that I found amusing.

Less charming was a lack of reference to "The Ugly Duckling," a children's book that played an important role in Stitch's transformation in the original, and the fact that they underplayed the family angle by having Nani question it. While I understand where those differences come from, I feel like both did a disservice to the story and made it a less potent tale than it could have been. 

And I could take or leave Cobra Bubbles (Courtney B. Vance) as a CIA agent who goes undercover as a child services worker instead of as a real child services worker like in the animated version. In the original, however, he seemed more amusing, perhaps because he was in a profession that couldn't be reconciled with his large stature, whereas in the remake, though he has the same funny name, he doesn't get many laughs.

Still, it's saying something that so many of the original "Lilo & Stitch" actors came back for the remake. Not only is Chris Sanders back as Stitch, but so is Tia Carrere, playing a new character, Mrs. Kekoa; along with Amy Hill and Jason Scott Lee, who are also in new parts. But most eyes will be on the new actors, especially the little girl who plays Lilo. Fortunately, Maia Kealoha manages to do her part justice. The only thing I didn't really understand was why she had to scream to express excitement. Don't get me wrong, I know little girls do this, but I don't understand why the filmmakers thought that it would be charming. However, that's hardly Kealoha's fault.

Sydney Elizebeth Agudong is good as Nani, too, expressing both determination and overwhelm as Lilo's caregiver. As Jumba and Pleakley, Zach Galifianakis and Billy Magnussen also make a good pair, although individually Galifianakis loses something because he doesn't have as powerful a voice as David Odgen Stiers (Jumba in the original).

All in all, though, this is a more than respectable remake of "Lilo & Stitch." It's just not my "Lilo & Stitch." Nevertheless, for today's kids (and their parents), this is a fine production, and no one will regret spending some time with it, even if they've already seen the animated version many times.

"Lilo & Stitch" opens in theaters on May 23.