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Gizmodo
27-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Gizmodo
Why People Are Furious About the New ‘Lilo & Stitch'
Walt Disney Pictures' live-action Lilo & Stitch opened over Memorial Day weekend. While it's making massive numbers for the studio, fans of the original film are shocked by the enormous changes to the animated film in its adaptation. There's minor stuff like Pleakley's distance from drag, but the film's human version of the character still very much fancies femme wear anyways. There's also anger at the omission of Gantu, the Galactic Federation's strongman, who you could argue felt like a random third act villain in the overstuffed animated feature's ending (famously, the 2002 movie underwent major changes mid-production, since its original ending took place on a hijacked plane). What's more, the culture has shifted a lot in the past few decades. So it makes sense that the new movie makes some alterations, including offering a more grounded take on the story. In particular, the ending is stirring up heated discourse on the internet regarding Nani's (Sydney Agudong) custody of her little sister Lilo (Maia Kealoha). In the 2002 film, Nani overcomes her social worker, former CIA agent Cobra Bubbles (Ving Rhames in the original, Courtney B. Vance in the live action film), in his attempts to get Lilo taken away from her; he ultimately relents after family is placed under the protection of the interstellar Galactic Federation. That's not at all what happens in the remake. Here, Nani hands over guardianship to their grandmotherly neighbor Tutu (Amy Hill), who throughout the film watches over the sisters as they try to have a parent and child dynamic, so Nani can leave home and attend college. Nani, who is implied to be just out of high school, really struggles to keep her little family afloat in the new film, especially after Stitch crash-lands into their lives. Tutu, with the help of their case worker Mrs. Kekoa (Tia Carrere, who voiced Nani in the animated film, playing a new character separated entirely from Vance's version of Bubbles, who remains a CIA agent), facilitates a way for the girls to stay sisters and yet both still have a childhood. And in Nani's case, that means the opportunity to leave her sister in safe hands while she follows her own goals, and presumably better provide for Lilo and Stitch in the future. This recontextualization of the story's themes drive this change, and not everyone is happy about it. The significant thread that ties everything together in both films is the exploration of 'Ohana,' the Hawaiian word for 'family,' and emphasizes that 'no one gets left behind or forgotten.' The original Lilo & Stitch, placed in a broader context of Hawaii's cultural relationship with the United States and colonial underpinnings between the two nations (touched on in both the original and the remake when Nani sings 'Aloha Oe' to her sister, a traditional song often interpreted as lamentation of the loss of Hawaii's sovereignty under American annexation), has often been considered as critiquing U.S. interests in Hawaii and the historical legacy of colonialism's separation of families. And so, a lot of the criticism of the new ending argues that Nani has seemingly giving up her sister to the system, in order to follow her own desires to go to college, betrays the idea of Ohana that's is championed by the original film. Instead, the live action film comes at this struggle by centering Nani being forced to grow up beyond her years in order to look after Lilo. In the original film, Nani is presented as older than she is in the live-action film (the fact that she is Lilo's guardian suggests that she's at least 18, although it's never explicitly stated), something that always struck me as a commentary on girls having to be treated as more traditionally motherly upon reaching a certain age, pushed into preconceived expectations and roles even in their youths. While Nani's story is more explicitly about her struggle to balance caring for Lilo with the mania compounded by Stitch's arrival, the story of young women, especially women of color, being forced by circumstance to grow up too quickly no doubt resonates with the broad audience a film like Lilo & Stitch has. As a mother now, I can look back at the 2002 film and see that Nani was still a kid herself, and prioritizes her sister over her own potential dreams and aspirations. She leaves herself behind to be her little sister's guardian after they lost their parents, especially because that version of Nani and Lilo didn't have a village to look out for them. Speaking to CinemaBlend, producer Jonathan Eirich shared that Chris Kekaniokalani Bright, who co-scripted the 2025 film, had some insight into how the animated version's lack of a community around Nani and Lilo didn't sit right. 'Something [Chris] said early on, he was like, 'I don't think in Hawai'i, if these two sisters had just lost their parents, I don't think they would be as isolated.' [Knowing] the community of Hawaii there would be support for them.' So, we sort of had this notion of this neighbor character, Tutu, that is actually there for them earlier in the story.' Community functioning as an extension of family becomes a new reinterpretation of Ohana in the live-action film. Instead of the case worker being Bubbles, trying to foil Nani's attempts at keeping Lilo (and his ex-CIA background once more explicitly tying him into the U.S.-Hawaii relationship as cultural context) in the animated feature, in the new film the case worker is now a fellow native Hawaiian character who encourages Nani to see if she can make the transition work. It really approaches this idea in a broader sense of Hawaiian culture, where we're repeatedly reminded that Nani's 'kuleana,' or responsibility, is to give Lilo the best possible future. In that context, you really feel for Nani as a girl struggling to keep her family afloat while grieving her parents. And this is before Stitch arrives in the picture, which really steers the focus to the sisters needing their childhood reclaimed as they have adventures with their new 'dog.' But no matter how the changes to the original were going to be handled, a backlash to Lilo & Stitch would've been inevitable regardless, given the broad cynicism towards Disney's live-action remakes in recent years regardless of their box office successes. Nani doesn't give up her sister to strangers in a foster system, as many who might not have seen the movie claim. Tutu and Mrs. Kekoa help them navigate toward a solution where they're still together and with their found family. She sees that she can lean on her extended family that's always been there, while also getting a chance to experience early adulthood without sacrificing herself or her sister. Hill herself recently expounded on that idea of found family within the concept of Ohana, prior to the blowback. 'It's not just the family, it's now the extended family. And I'm part of that extended family. I'm not blood related to them. I live next door. I knew the parents. I knew the kids since they were little. And I just feel so close to them. And it just is, of course, a natural progression to feel like I want to take care of them and also be a little nosy about things. Cause isn't that what family is?' she said in an interview posted on Stage. It makes sense for Tutu to play the role of guardian to not just Lilo, but Nani too, in supporting her pursuit of higher education and rediscovering her love of surfing. The movie even provides a more fantastical solution to the issue of Nani leaving her sister and Hawaii behind, which is set up earlier in the film. Remember that portal gun Jumba uses to get to various spots where Stitch was sighted? In the end, it's revealed that Nani now has it, which means she can come home home after school and still be very much present in Lilo's life. It sure beats sleeping in a dorm room when you can easily transport to your room at home, and it still keeps the sisters together—a best of both worlds that allows the remake to have its own take on similar themes to the animated original.
Nahar Net
21-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Nahar Net
'Lilo & Stitch,' a sweet but unnecessary live-action remake
The six-legged alien Stitch from "Lilo & Stitch" doesn't choose to be bad. He's just genetically programed that way. Kind of like the way Disney is apparently programmed these days to strip mine its old animated stories to make poor live-action remakes. So here comes the sweet but utterly unnecessary "Lilo & Stitch" of 2025, which carefully apes almost every detail of the 2002 original but then goes all Hollywood at the end with over-the-top explosions, the addition of a CIA team and Tom Cruise-level heroics, maybe to try to compete with the latest "Mission: Impossible" opening at the same time. "What deranged maniac would create something like this?" asks the head of the Galactic Federation about Stitch but they could easily refer to whoever at Disney green-lit this lazy cash grab that assumes we won't remember the original, wastes the comic zip of Zach Galifianakis and Billy Magnussen and product-places Capri Sun. Screenwriters Chris Kekaniokalani Bright and Mike Van Waes are credited with the new story but it's built on the work of the original's Chris Sanders and Dean DeBlois, right down to swiping whole chunks of dialogue, the same structure and same characters. Disney's live-action remakes/re-imaginings have been a staple for more than a decade, with titles raided again including "The Little Mermaid," "Aladdin," "The Jungle Book," "Mulan," "Dumbo," "Pinocchio" and "Snow White." Here's hoping "Lilo & Stitch" convinces the studio to generate some new stories. Our heroine here is Lilo, a 6-year-old lonely Native Hawaiian girl who is shunned and bullied by her peers. She shoves back, pouts and adores Elvis. She is played winsomely by Maia Kealoha. "Am I bad?" Lilo asks her sister. The reply: "You're not bad. You just do bad things sometimes." Sydney Elizabeth Agudong artfully plays her older sister and mother figure, trying to keep the siblings afloat after the death of their parents. The filmmakers have beefed up the older sister's story with her yearning to be a marine biologist. Agudong proves a soulful sister, playing a ukulele, singing and surfing. Stitch — voiced again by Sanders — is the product of an illegal genetic experimentation in a far-off galaxy who can think faster than a supercomputer. He is built to destroy, like a reverse E.T. (Love will tame him, of course.) Stitch is faithfully realized, right down to his fur and koala bear nose. Turning the 2002 animated movie into live-action has meant the two aliens tasked with tracking down the escapee Stitch use cloning technology to become humans — enter Galifianakis and Magnussen. The technology has also denuded their comedic chops, leaving them just two bumbling doofuses. Tia Carrere, who voiced the older sister in the first film, takes over as social services case worker from Ving Rhames, only this time friendlier and helpful. Courtney B. Vance plays a new character — a CIA officer who investigates aliens and, in this case, chooses a hairball alien over his training, his nation and the truth. Director Dean Fleischer Camp, the filmmaker behind the animated feature film "Marcel the Shell with Shoes On," proves adept at mixing humans and digital creations and revels in the anarchic excesses of Stitch. But the violence — lasers, forks in blenders, a house burned down — is unnecessary. "Lilo & Stitch" is really a story about sisters and how families can be dysfunctional but still work as long as there's love. That message thankfully hasn't been diluted in the remake despite being overloaded with temporal portals, a Jet Ski chase and an overwrought conclusion. Disney should have left the original alone. "Lilo & Stitch," a Walt Disney Studios release that hits theaters Friday, is rated PG for "action, peril and thematic elements." Running time: 148 minutes. One and a half stars out of four.
Tom's Guide
21-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Tom's Guide
'Lilo & Stitch' is a heartwarming live-action remake that respects the original magic — and it transported me back to my childhood
I grew up with 'Lilo & Stitch,' like a lot of people in my generation probably did. It was one of those movies I played on repeat until the DVD became overused and started skipping. Lilo felt like the kind of kid you didn't see often in animated movies: messy, misunderstood and completely herself. And Stitch was pure chaotic charm. So when Disney invited me to an early screening of the new live-action remake, I knew I had to go. Admittedly, I was a little skeptical. Like many fans of the original, I've seen how live-action remakes can sometimes miss the mark. But here's the surprise: not only does this version honor the soul of the original, it actually strengthens some of the emotional beats. It's still about family, loss and belonging, but told in a way that feels slightly more grounded, without sacrificing the fun. Hannah Waddingham (who voices the Ground Councilwoman) actually popped up at the early screening of 'Lilo & Stitch' and called the movie a 'juicy berry,' which felt like the perfect way to describe something so sweet, lively, and full of heart. The real question: Does it work? Is it worth the trip back to the islands with a new cast, new look, and new energy? Here's my full take on Disney's latest reimagining — what it gets right, where it takes creative swings, and why it might just be one of Disney's strongest live-action remakes to date. From the opening notes of Elvis Presley's 'Heartbreak Hotel' played by Lilo when she was having a tantrum to the familiar sight of the ice cream man's cone meeting its inevitable fate, Disney's live-action 'Lilo & Stitch' is a heartfelt homage to the 2002 original. Watching it with my dad (who introduced me to the animated classic when I was little), I found us both discreetly wiping away tears by the time the credits rolled. Clearly, this movie did something right. 'Lilo & Stitch' pretty much follows the same plot beats as the original. We start off by seeing the Galactic Federation, led by Ground Councilwoman (Waddingham), convicting Dr. Jumba for illegal experiments after he creates Experiment 626 — a 'destructive, intelligent creature.' When 626 escapes and crash-lands in Hawaii, he's mistaken for a dog and taken to a shelter. It's there that Lilo ends up adopting him and naming him Stitch after he accidentally rips the leather seats in Nani's car. Fans of the original will be pleased to know that the remake doesn't venture far from the classic in terms of storytelling. This remake actually has fun introducing new scenes, and they don't detract from the experience at all. When Stitch explores his new surroundings after crashing on Earth, he ends up unintentionally gate-crashing a wedding when he smells the cake, and it's a hilariously fun watch. There are also wholesome moments between Lilo and Stitch, including splashing each other with lemonade, her teaching him how not to break things and a sweet moment where she teaches him a form of hula dancing. At the center of this emotional journey, and the reason why the remake works so well, is newcomer Maia Kealoha, whose portrayal of Lilo is nothing short of impressive. She brings so much warmth and honesty to the character, capturing all the things that made Lilo so special in the original: the mischief, the loneliness, the stubbornness, and that deep need to feel like she belongs. The movie thoughtfully preserves the original's core themes — grief, identity, and the unbreakable bonds of family — while introducing them to a new generation. It hits that sweet spot where kids can enjoy the fun and chaos, but adults will feel the emotional weight, too. What really got me, though (and why you need tissues), was Lilo and Nani's relationship. Their dynamic has always been the heart of the story, but this version made it feel even more real. Sydney Agudong brings a grounded, emotional weight to Nani that makes their bond feel even more powerful than I remember. You can feel the love and frustration between them, and it gives the story substance. Director Dean Fleischer Camp (of 'Marcel the Shell with Shoes On' fame) brings that same mix of tenderness and humor here, and it works beautifully. And the decision to have Chris Sanders reprise his role as the voice of Stitch adds a layer of continuity that fans will appreciate. Like most live-action remakes, 'Lilo & Stitch' makes a few changes along the way, but luckily, none of them take away from the story's emotional core. In fact, most of the updates feel more like clever workarounds than major detours. One of the biggest changes is that Jumba and Pleakley appear as humans while on Earth. This was clearly a budget decision since animating two aliens for the entire movie would've been a major challenge. Surprisingly, it works, as the aliens use a device on two tourists at the resort, allowing them to take their physical form. Their personalities are still totally intact, and it was actually pretty fun watching Zach Galifianakis and Billy Magnussen bounce off each other in these roles. Their chemistry adds a lot of humor and heart, even if their appearances are more grounded than fans might expect. Another noticeable absence is Captain Gantu. He's a towering alien military officer originally tasked with capturing Experiment 626 after Jumba and Pleakley fail their mission. Again, this was probably due to CGI constraints, but the movie finds a smart way around it. Instead of introducing another alien presence to introduce the conflict in the third act, the story leans more heavily into Jumba's arc. He essentially steps into the antagonist role near the end. His motivations are still tied to retrieving Stitch, and it gives his character a little more depth in the process. The movie also slips in some fun nods for long-time fans. Tia Carrere, who originally voiced Nani, now appears as the social worker. There's also a live-action version of Tūtū (Amy Hill), the neighbor from the 'Lilo & Stitch' series and grandmother of David (Kaipo Dudoit). Speaking of David, I felt as though his performance got a little lost in this remake, and that was likely due to the heavy focus on Lilo and Nani's sibling conflict (which fortunately paid off). These cameos don't shift the story much, but they're nice touches. The only change that raised an eyebrow was turning Cobra Bubbles (Courtney B. Vance) into a CIA agent hunting the aliens, but even that felt like it fit into this version's slightly more grounded tone. All in all, the tweaks are noticeable, but they don't mess with the spirit of the movie. It's still 'Lilo & Stitch' at its core, just with a few new tricks to please a new generation. 'Lilo & Stitch' proves that a live-action remake can honor the original while still feeling fresh. It keeps the heart, humor, and emotional depth that made the 2002 movie so beloved, all while introducing smart updates for a new generation. The cast is excellent, especially Maia Kealoha and Sydney Agudong, and the movie's thoughtful changes (though not perfect) never take away from its soul. It's nostalgic without being hollow, emotional without being forced, and funny in all the right ways. Overall, it feels like this remake was made by people who genuinely get what 'Lilo & Stitch' means to so many of us. It adds something new and somehow makes the magic feel fresh all over again. Final warning, though: You'll definitely need tissues.
San Francisco Chronicle
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- San Francisco Chronicle
Movie Review: 'Lilo & Stitch,' a sweet but unnecessary live-action remake
The six-legged alien Stitch from 'Lilo & Stitch' doesn't choose to be bad. He's just genetically programed that way. Kind of like the way Disney is apparently programmed these days to strip mine its old animated stories to make poor live-action remakes. So here comes the sweet but utterly unnecessary 'Lilo & Stitch' of 2025, which carefully apes almost every detail of the 2002 original but then goes all Hollywood at the end with over-the-top explosions, the addition of a CIA team and Tom Cruise-level heroics, maybe to try to compete with the latest 'Mission: Impossible' opening at the same time. 'What deranged maniac would create something like this?' asks the head of the Galactic Federation about Stitch but they could easily refer to whoever at Disney green-lit this lazy cash grab that assumes we won't remember the original, wastes the comic zip of Zach Galifianakis and Billy Magnussen and product-places Capri Sun. Screenwriters Chris Kekaniokalani Bright and Mike Van Waes are credited with the new story but it's built on the work of the original's Chris Sanders and Dean DeBlois, right down to swiping whole chunks of dialogue, the same structure and same characters. Disney's live-action remakes/re-imaginings have been a staple for more than a decade, with titles raided again including 'The Little Mermaid,' 'Aladdin,' 'The Jungle Book,' 'Mulan,' 'Dumbo,' 'Pinocchio' and 'Snow White.' Here's hoping 'Lilo & Stitch' convinces the studio to generate some new stories. Our heroine here is Lilo, a 6-year-old lonely Native Hawaiian girl who is shunned and bullied by her peers. She shoves back, pouts and adores Elvis. She is played winsomely by Maia Kealoha. 'Am I bad?' Lilo asks her sister. The reply: 'You're not bad. You just do bad things sometimes.' Sydney Elizabeth Agudong artfully plays her older sister and mother figure, trying to keep the siblings afloat after the death of their parents. The filmmakers have beefed up the older sister's story with her yearning to be a marine biologist. Agudong proves a soulful sister, playing a ukulele, singing and surfing. Stitch — voiced again by Sanders — is the product of an illegal genetic experimentation in a far-off galaxy who can think faster than a supercomputer. He is built to destroy, like a reverse E.T. (Love will tame him, of course.) Stitch is faithfully realized, right down to his fur and koala bear nose. Turning the 2002 animated movie into live-action has meant the two aliens tasked with tracking down the escapee Stitch use cloning technology to become humans — enter Galifianakis and Magnussen. The technology has also denuded their comedic chops, leaving them just two bumbling doofuses. Tia Carrere, who voiced the older sister in the first film, takes over as social services case worker from Ving Rhames, only this time friendlier and helpful. Courtney B. Vance plays a new character — a CIA officer who investigates aliens and, in this case, chooses a hairball alien over his training, his nation and the truth. Director Dean Fleischer Camp, the filmmaker behind the animated feature film 'Marcel the Shell with Shoes On,' proves adept at mixing humans and digital creations and revels in the anarchic excesses of Stitch. But the violence — lasers, forks in blenders, a house burned down — is unnecessary. 'Lilo & Stitch' is really a story about sisters and how families can be dysfunctional but still work as long as there's love. That message thankfully hasn't been diluted in the remake despite being overloaded with temporal portals, a Jet Ski chase and an overwrought conclusion. Disney should have left the original alone. 'Lilo & Stitch,' a Walt Disney Studios release that hits theaters Friday, is rated PG for 'action, peril and thematic elements.' Running time: 148 minutes. One and a half stars out of four.
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Movie Review: 'Lilo & Stitch,' a sweet but unnecessary live-action remake
The six-legged alien Stitch from 'Lilo & Stitch' doesn't choose to be bad. He's just genetically programed that way. Kind of like the way Disney is apparently programmed these days to strip mine its old animated stories to make poor live-action remakes. So here comes the sweet but utterly unnecessary 'Lilo & Stitch' of 2025, which carefully apes almost every detail of the 2002 original but then goes all Hollywood at the end with over-the-top explosions, the addition of a CIA team and Tom Cruise-level heroics, maybe to try to compete with the latest 'Mission: Impossible' opening at the same time. 'What deranged maniac would create something like this?' asks the head of the Galactic Federation about Stitch but they could easily refer to whoever at Disney green-lit this lazy cash grab that assumes we won't remember the original, wastes the comic zip of Zach Galifianakis and Billy Magnussen and product-places Capri Sun. Screenwriters Chris Kekaniokalani Bright and Mike Van Waes are credited with the new story but it's built on the work of the original's Chris Sanders and Dean DeBlois, right down to swiping whole chunks of dialogue, the same structure and same characters. Disney's live-action remakes/re-imaginings have been a staple for more than a decade, with titles raided again including 'The Little Mermaid,' 'Aladdin,' 'The Jungle Book,' 'Mulan,' 'Dumbo,' 'Pinocchio' and 'Snow White.' Here's hoping 'Lilo & Stitch' convinces the studio to generate some new stories. Our heroine here is Lilo, a 6-year-old lonely Native Hawaiian girl who is shunned and bullied by her peers. She shoves back, pouts and adores Elvis. She is played winsomely by Maia Kealoha. 'Am I bad?' Lilo asks her sister. The reply: 'You're not bad. You just do bad things sometimes.' Sydney Elizabeth Agudong artfully plays her older sister and mother figure, trying to keep the siblings afloat after the death of their parents. The filmmakers have beefed up the older sister's story with her yearning to be a marine biologist. Agudong proves a soulful sister, playing a ukulele, singing and surfing. Stitch — voiced again by Sanders — is the product of an illegal genetic experimentation in a far-off galaxy who can think faster than a supercomputer. He is built to destroy, like a reverse E.T. (Love will tame him, of course.) Stitch is faithfully realized, right down to his fur and koala bear nose. Turning the 2002 animated movie into live-action has meant the two aliens tasked with tracking down the escapee Stitch use cloning technology to become humans — enter Galifianakis and Magnussen. The technology has also denuded their comedic chops, leaving them just two bumbling doofuses. Tia Carrere, who voiced the older sister in the first film, takes over as social services case worker from Ving Rhames, only this time friendlier and helpful. Courtney B. Vance plays a new character — a CIA officer who investigates aliens and, in this case, chooses a hairball alien over his training, his nation and the truth. Director Dean Fleischer Camp, the filmmaker behind the animated feature film 'Marcel the Shell with Shoes On,' proves adept at mixing humans and digital creations and revels in the anarchic excesses of Stitch. But the violence — lasers, forks in blenders, a house burned down — is unnecessary. 'Lilo & Stitch' is really a story about sisters and how families can be dysfunctional but still work as long as there's love. That message thankfully hasn't been diluted in the remake despite being overloaded with temporal portals, a Jet Ski chase and an overwrought conclusion. Disney should have left the original alone. 'Lilo & Stitch,' a Walt Disney Studios release that hits theaters Friday, is rated PG for 'action, peril and thematic elements.' Running time: 148 minutes. One and a half stars out of four.
