Lilo and Stitch Discussion

[Wonderlicious]

I know a lot of these "discussions" by Aaron have been popping up around the place, but I'll do one for Lilo and Stitch for the sake of it.

I recentlty watched this movie for the first time ever last Saturday. I was a bit worried that I wouldn't like it as many of the films currently to come out of Disney have been a bit lackluster lately(eg- Snow Dogs, Jungle Book 2, Atlantis), and I thought that Lilo and Stitch would suffer from that syndrome, too. Fortunately, it didn't! I loved Lilo and Stitch and I think it's the best Disney movie to come along since Aladdin, better than even excellent ones like Mulan and The Lion King! It's a charming and colourful film, IMO.

If you haven't seen this animated film, go and see it. It's one of the best animated films you'll ever see!

[disneywb]

I just saw this film over the summer. It wasn't exactly my favorite, but it was a pleasant surprise. I really liked the Hawaiian local and the attitude of the characters. For a story set in modern times, it was very good. I've attempted to watch the tv show from time to time, as it has at least a shadow of the original's color and spunk.

[TheZue]

I've always loved this movie. One of the few recent ones I went to the theatre for. The colors in it are beautiful! It's a great soundtrack too, good mix of Hawaiian music and Elvis. One of the my favorite scenes in it is the surfing scene, it captures all of the things I really love in the movie. Of course there is some great humor in it too. Kevin MacDonald is great trying to save all the mosquitos lol.

[Loomis]

Regular members of the board won't be surprised to learn that this is one of my all time favourite Disney films. I think I primarily like it for the sense of humour - Disney always works best when they are not taking themselves seriously, and the ad-campaign for this proved from the start that they were in no danger of doing that.

The animation style is also quite awesome - simple but effective.

Finally, I think it works because it is almost an anti-Disney film - yes, it preaches family values (like most Disney films), but it does so through a disfunctional family. "This is my family. I found it, all on my own. It's little, and broken, but still good. Yeah, still good."

I also made these comments in the Animated Countdown:

"He was small. He was blue. He was an abomination. He was also cute and fluffy. And nobody saw him coming. Least of all, me. With a sense of humour that was completely from left-field for Disney, this simple story of family cracked many a cynical facade, mine included. In an age of souped-up special effects wizardry, the simple brush-strokes of watercolours showed that even the most 'untrainable' of us could still find their places in the world. "

[MickeyMousePal]

Well, I think that Lilo & Stitch was good but not excellent because it's kind of bad for kids to watch. Both Lilo & Stitch are brats and this is bad for little kids to watch I really think it should be PG- 13 not just PG. Why did Disney just start to make PG films I really didn't under stand that point beside to get teenagers to see the films.
Other then that Lilo and Stitch was great it really help Disney go back up a little since it had box office misses.
I'm really excited about Lilo & Stitch: Masterpiece Edition.

[Sekaino Jasmine]

PG-13? Yeah, okay.

I like this movie, but I didn't love it. A lot of things didn't make sense to me. I won't list them, but that's one of the reason I didn't like it. I like things to make sense for some reason.

Um, Lilo and Stich being rated PG reminded me...how come no movies are rated G anymore?

[toonaspie]

Well, I think that Lilo & Stitch was good but not excellent because it's kind of bad for kids to watch. Both Lilo & Stitch are brats and this is bad for little kids to watch I really think it should be PG- 13 not just PG. Why did Disney just start to make PG films I really didn't under stand that point beside to get teenagers to see the films.
Other then that Lilo and Stitch was great it really help Disney go back up a little since it had box office misses.
I'm really excited about Lilo & Stitch: Masterpiece Edition.

I wouldnt call Lilo or Stitch brats...more like disturbed, antisocial, misfits. It's a unique type of Disney character which I'm sure has been done before but rarely. After all Mertle and the other girls are always calling her "weird-lo" so Lilo would then make voodoo dolls (teehee) I can totally see Lilo becoming a goth when she reaches puberty. I think she and Stitch are misunderstood but not brats, that's pretty much every Disney channel character out there!

[Squirrel]

Well, I gotta say ...

It's my favorite movie. Not just my favorite Disney, but my favorite movie. Period. I do love it. For a lot of reasons. The characters, Stitch himself. He's dynamic, has attitude, is adorable, he's ... he's just Stitch! And I can't resist blue (always been my favorite color). I like Stitch's expressiveness, the way he moves. His background. Personality. He was a very appealing main character, and a very complex one.

Lilo's a good character, as well. And had a real relationship with her sister. It wasn't a "fake" relationship. They fought, there was tension, and that was refreshing to see. And the pairing of Lilo and Stitch is wonderful. Watching them learn from each other. I think my favorite scene in the film is the one after Stitch sees the picture of Lilo's parents, the "that was us, before" scene, and when Lilo presses him about his own family ... seeing Stitch paw at the pillow, so vulnerable. Emotionally exposed. And then slipping away and crying out that he's "lost." I thought that was beautiful ... and very poignant.

Also, the setting, the location. It feels unique, and it cradles the characters. Is very invitinig. The warm, lush watercolors. Bright. The soft, round designs. Curves. Simple. Like you could hug them and not get cut (as opposed to Home on the Range, which is heavy on angles; which I don't mind, but I like the softer style, by preference). It has a unique, almost old-time feel, which I very much took to ... traditional, instead of cutting edge or boundary-pushing.

The music ... the two Hawaiian songs. Very bouncy, very pleasant. Satisfying. Very breezy, and the score underneath it, and the Elvis songs. The Elvis thing gives it a bit of extra flair. It fits so perfectly. I thought the themes (of family, of loneliness) were good ones ... I could sympathize, empathize with Stitch and Lilo at times.

It just had a sweet, innocent air. An innocent romantic sensibility, or something. Plus, I've always liked outer space things (the Trek shows, I really enjoy), so it was neat to see Disney do "aliens" and "outer space" scenes. I thought the film managed to be funny and dramatic, mixed a lot of emotions.

I just think it's a very unique little film. Something special. And I hold it very dear. I was hooked several months before ... with the creative marketing. It clicked with me before I even knew what it was, really.

[PublicEnemy#1]

While I did like it, I think it's highly overappreciated. I won't buy the Masterpiece Edition as I already own the regular edition.

[Loomis]

Well, I think that Lilo & Stitch was good but not excellent because it's kind of bad for kids to watch. Both Lilo & Stitch are brats and this is bad for little kids to watch I really think it should be PG- 13 not just PG.

Well, I totally disagree.

The film might be a lot of things, but a bad influence, hardly.

The whole point of the film was that both Lilo and Stitch were social outcasts who helped each other find their place in the world.

Besides, I think Lilo's "friends" were way brattier than she ever was (although she did nail the door shut). I mean, the main character of the Lion King wins by killing (or sending to their death) another character! I think that is a worse example for kids.

I think it is one of the few recent Disney films that has its moral compass pointing true north, rather than simply gravitating to whatever politically correct platform seems most trendy at the time.

[Mayhem]

Anyone who doesn't like it is a schtoooopidhead

Actually I was pleasantly surprised by Lilo & Stitch. I've enjoyed much of Disney's 1990s output, and whilst not classic, was better than some others from the 70s and 80s I could mention. And then along rolls this, which I only watched for the first time a couple of months ago after borrowing the DVD from my brother's girlfriend. And I actually found myself laughing out loud at some points, which doesn't usually happen with Disney animated films. Okay I chuckle and smirk, but full on laughing? It was definitely hitting the right buttons there. And it's a damn good film for being (if you leave the scifi space stuff aside) rather true-to-life and real on how human relations work and it isn't all sweetness and light.

[stitch79]

Well this is my favorite Disney movie. It is a refreshing change from the normal "Disneyesque" movies that have come before it. I can't wait for the 2 disc edition!

[Luke]

Lilo & Stitch is not the most original story, but it does seem a bit of a stray from Disney formula. I didn't get a strong attachment to this one the way I have even with some recent Disney films, but I did enjoy it to a degree and saw its strong points.

The film does fail me in some places, but I have trouble putting my finger on it. The characters are kind of abrasive, even if they were meant to be more 'realistic' or 'modern.' The drama that arises never seems as heartfelt as <i>E.T.</i>, but I kind of liked it more than the widely-loved-on-the-Internet <i>Iron Giant</i>.

It had some nice visuals and some good parts, but I don't see <i>Lilo & Stitch</i> as a rebirth of Disney animation, a reaffirmation of 2-D films, or a return to top Disney form. I moreso view it as a good outing from Disney Feature Animation, probably one of the better efforts this decade.

[Christian]

I mean, the main character of the Lion King wins by killing (or sending to their death) another character! I think that is a worse example for kids.

What in the world?!?! You really think Disney is telling kids to kill other people? If the Lion King was made by anybody other than Disney then what Simba did would rightfully be seen as self defense; Scar wasn't exactly letting him walk away and did kill Mufasa and tried everything he could to kill Simba and Simba tried everything he could to keep things peaceful and to let Scar walk away from his usurped throne without harm. But since it is Disney then obviously they must be corrupting the little kiddies.

[Loomis]

I mean, the main character of the Lion King wins by killing (or sending to their death) another character! I think that is a worse example for kids.

What in the world?!?! You really think Disney is telling kids to kill other people? If the Lion King was made by anybody other than Disney then what Simba did would rightfully be seen as self defense; Scar wasn't exactly letting him walk away and did kill Mufasa and tried everything he could to kill Simba and Simba tried everything he could to keep things peaceful and to let Scar walk away from his usurped throne without harm. But since it is Disney then obviously they must be corrupting the little kiddies.

No I'm not sayng Disney is telling people to kill others. But if you are going to argue that a certain behaviour from a main character in a movie will cause kids to emulate it (and as MMP put it, "this is bad for little kids to watch ") then I was simply arguing that this is probably worse for kids to watch, and it is considered a classic. If you'd read the whole thread rather than picking on one sentence, you'd get that.

[Prince Eric]

Luke, can you really compare Lilo & Stitch with E.T. I mean, they are two totally different genres, different mediums, and serve different purposes.

Not original? This is as original as you're going to get in terms of animated films these days, sans the g reat works of Hayoa Miyazaki. The blending of comedy/dram/sci-fi/musical/experimental is almost unpredented. I think some people are just turned off because the characters aren't the cookie-cutter Disney mold and aren't princesses ready to leap into the arms of a prince. Let's be honest, this is the only film of the 2000's that has given Disney a profit in the initial theater release alone. In terms of animation in general, only Spirited Away has matched it. Disney has never been higher artistically since their 90's Renaissance.

Let's not forget it's Academy Award nomination for Best Animated Feature Film people! It's divisive, of course, I mean, I don't blame people for not liking its zanny structure, but someone should have given the Disney folks an award for that beautifully un-pretentious ad campaign. That in itself i s Disney at its highest form. Plus, the advanced poster is killer!

[Christian]

I like Lilo and Stitch quite a bit. I even like it better than ET and Iron Giant, which are both good films. But it is basically the same story as those films. It's just more colorful and frenetic, which is not a bad thing, but it doesn't prove the story is original.

[DreamerQ18]

Okay I am bring back this thread because I never got to post on it since I was extremly busy when it did come up. So hem hem:: Clears throat...

Lilo and Stitch is my FAVORITE MOVIE!!!! From the non musical era. I remember falling in love with it way before it was in theaters just the trailers were enough for me to be connected with this movie. I saw it the 2nd day it came out to theaters and Loved it everything about it the colors were brilliant... And the characters were so orignal compared to the usualy formulated ones. And I love the way Stitch's character eveloved through out the movie from this bad little monster to carring sweet heart. I mean to say that Stitch is a bad influence and Lilo that they are bratty isnt totaly fair I mean they are children no child is perfect even stitch. I also liked the way the family was set up that it was Nani wanting to take care of her little sister. The message of the movie to me is one of the strongest to come from Disney in a while with the love of FAMILY behind you everything will work out. To me this makes it a great movie so those are just my thoughts.

[Stitch fan]

i loved this movie the sequel the series the prequil to the sequel and ALL the character's except hamstervile he was annoying to lisen to...
anyway i love the way their are so many hardcore fans of lilo and stitch im also proud to say i am the THE Stitch fan!!! anyone would agree if they ever talked to me all my friends say it because i know almost everything about the first movie and the stitch has a glitch movie i know everything and am going to post a question answer post on this site soon, check it out when you can.

ps DreamerQ18 is right this is the best movie ever made by ANYONE its strong gentle heartful entertainment for all ages young or old easily the best............... and its ENDING!!!!! NOOOOOOOOOO
its not fair who agrees with me?

[Stitch fan]

i am going to be blunt
im going to try to keep the series and other stitch related things alive for as long as possible if we all get together and maybe help out disney we can do something
ideas, support, fan mail

its a weird idea but it has to start sometime.