Verdict: 3/5
The live action reimagining of ‘Lilo & Stitch’ had some good elements and pulled my heartstrings to the point of tears, so it took me some time to figure out why I felt disappointed when I left the theatre.
It follows the story of Lilo (Maia Kealoha) and her older sister Nani (Sydney Agudong) after the loss of their parents. Despite practically being a kid herself, the teenage Nani does everything she can to keep custody of six-year-old Lilo.
As we know from the 2002 film, things start going wrong when an alien being hunted by the United Galactic Federation moves in with the family as their pet.
Lilo names him Stitch.
Stitch looks great in the live action adaptation. I can’t fault the special effects team at all. In fact, at some points throughout the film, I could see more emotion on the CGI alien’s face than I could on the humans. Although, while we’re on the topic of CGI aliens, Jumba (Zach Galifianakis) and Pleakley (Billy Magnussen) didn’t hit the spot for me.
Jumba was the villain of the film, which was a disappointment. In the original movie, the antagonist was Captain Gantu, the muscle man for the Galactic Federation tasked with capturing Experiment 626 (Stitch).
The removal of Captain Gantu for the live action adaptation meant audiences didn’t get to see Jumba’s character development.
However, the spotlight on Nani’s journey and the deeper look at foster care counteracted this a bit.
The acting by Agudong was my favourite part of the film. She captured the emotional turmoil of a big sister trying to be a parent while keeping herself afloat at the same time.
Regardless, fans of the original may notice some missing emotional depth in this film, along with no spaceship chases and minimal Elvis Presley.
I can’t in good conscience recommend the film to die-hard fans of the original, but for those looking for a nice movie with no preconceived expectations, go grab a ticket.
See this movie at Hoyts Penrith.
Ally Hall
Ally Hall joined the Weekender in 2024, and focuses on entertainment and community stories. She's a graduate of the University of South Australia and has previously worked as a Video Journalist with Southern Cross Austereo and as a News Reader with Australian Radio Network.