Lilo & Stitch (2002)

Genres

Adventure | Animation | Comedy

Directors

Chris Sanders | Dean DeBlois

Country

USA

Voice Cast

Daveigh Chase, Chris Sanders, Tia Carrere, David Odgen, Kevin McDonald, Ving Rhames, Kevin Michael Richardson, Zoe Caldwell, Jason Scott Lee, David Kawen, Amy Hill

Storyline

An extra-terrestrial experiment (Chris Sanders) escapes and crash lands on Hawaii, where little Lilo (Daveigh Chase) adopted him believing he's a dog.

Opinion

I don't know how it has been possible, but, in almost 23 years, I've seen "Lilo & Stitch" for the first time only this week and I was happy to have watched such a heartwarming and charming animated film from Disney.

It's probably because I'm too used to Disney's princess movies, but I wasn't expecting this kind of story at all. It is fresh, entertaining and highly engaging, and it manages to stand out not because of its themes of friendship and need to find a place where to belong that are more or less present in all animated films, but because it addresses the issue of families torn apart by social services, highlighting the importance of family and unity. And the filmmakers handle this deeper part quite well.

"Lilo & Stitch" also features great characters. They are well-written, well-developed (unlike most Disney characters), quite unique and lovable and it's easy to identify with them. I can't believe I'm actually saying this but the character I could relate the most was Stitch, who is basically an outsider who doesn't get along with anyone. And the voice cast delivers good performances.

Although it touches some "heavy" themes, the film is very fun to watch and has some memorable scenes, like Stitch running over the model of San Francisco, destroying everything as if he were Godzilla. I had as much fun as he did in that moment.

Although it is traditional and not as good as Pixar's, the animation is still beautiful and charming, especially the Hawaiian setting.