One of the good points to being a parent is that you get to go and see lots of fun children's films, without everyone looking at you funny!! I make full use of this privilege and took my son to see the new release of Lilo and Stitch.
I have always enjoyed Disney films and although they tend to sway from the original story quite a bit, they still make for great entertainment and lovable characters. So I was interested in seeing what they came up with for this one!
The story starts in a council far away where Dr Jumba Jookiba, voiced by David Stiers (The Dead Zone and Mighty Aphrodite) is being questioned about his illegal genetic experiments, in particular Experiment 626, a genetically programmed fighting machine in the form of a little animal. It has a brain faster than a super computer and can lift 3000 times its own body weight!
Experiment 626 is found to have no redeeming features and sentenced to life in exile on
an asteroid. He is transported to his new home by Captain Gantu, who is voiced by Kevin Richardson (The Powerpuff Girls and Star Wars Animation). Naturally, he escapes and crashes on Earth, on the island of Hawaii.
Dr Jookiba is released from prison and dispatched to retrieve him, along with earth specialist Pleakley (Kevin McDonald). Earth is a protected planet due to the need to replenish the protected mosquito population! As the primary food source for the mosquitos, humans are protected too!
Once on Earth, Experiment 626 pretends to be a dog to evade capture and is given the name Stitch by his new owner Lilo (Daveigh Chase). Lilo lives with her older sister Nani (Tia Carrere), as their parents were killed in a car accident. She is lonely little girl, with no friends as she is poor and a little different to the other children. Stitch is her first real friend.
Chaos reigns as Stitch tries to evade capture, and Lilo faces being taken away by the rather unusual social services man Mr Cobra Bubbles (Ving Rhames). Mr Bubbles is a big black guy, who wouldn't look out of place in the FBI and is excellently voiced by the man who plays Luther Stockwell in the MI2 and MI3.
Nani finds love with her friend David (Jason Scott Lee of Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story), who takes them surfing a lot! While Stitch learns to be an upstanding citizen by learning to be just like Elvis Presley.
When Dr Jookiba and Pleakley are sacked by the council for failing to catch Stitch, they run wild and blow up Nani and Lilo's house in an attempt to catch him. All this action attracts the attention of Mr Bubbles, and Lilo runs away because she does not want to leave Nani. She and Stitch are captured by Captain Gantu, who has been dispatched by the council in the place of Pleakley and Dr Jookiba. Stitch escapes, then realises his good side by helping to rescue her.
I don't want to spoil it by telling the whole story, but when Stitch says that Lilo and Nani are his family, it may be small and it may be broken, but they are his family, tears sprang to my eyes. It sounded rather like my family. There are only 2 of us and it may not work brilliantly all the time, but we are still a family.
Stitch was voiced by the co-writer and co-director Chris Sanders (III). He has worked for Disney on such films as Beauty and the Beast, Mulan and the Lion King. This film is based on his idea. His co-writer and director is Sean DeBlois, whose previous work was on Mulan.
They have both done an excellent job with this film. I really enjoyed the journey of Stitch in learning about family and that you can over come your 'programming'. The characters are fun and lovable, humans and aliens alike. My son came out of the film very excited and repeating everything we had seen 3 times, as children do. Well you weren't in there with them were you!!
The music was great, some Elvis and some new songs, which were perfect for the surf scenes and the emotional moments! The animation was exactly what I would expect from a Disney animation. It wasn't as 3D as some of the computer generated animations, but I think that is all part of the charm of the film.
It is a great family film, with crazy but lovable characters. I would recommend going to see it.
![Lilo&Stitch [DVD] [2002]](http://picnicb.ciao.com/uk/78207113.jpg)
20.04.2003 12:29
This sound good but not something I'd like.
11.02.2003 15:53
Good op! I love this film i'm a big disney fan and i was crying with laughter in the cinema it was just that funny!
08.11.2002 17:11
We enjoyed this very much indeed :0) one for the DVD collection in the future