Directed by: Dean Fleischer Camp
Starring: Maia Kealoha, Sydney Agudong, Chris Sanders
Release Date: May 23, 2025
Runtime: 1 hr 48 min
My Rating:
I know, this isn’t my usual flavor of movie to see in the theater, but when you have a wife and daughter who love Stitch, you make some compromises. In my case, it was to see Thunderbolts* next. With that said, I won’t summarize this movie because it follows the same plot as the 2002 animated film. We’ll just jump right into the review.
As far as live-action remakes are concerned, this isn’t the worst. Granted, I haven’t seen all of them. My favorite, at the moment, is Mulan, and my least favorite is Beauty and the Beast. I have yet to see Aladdin and The Lion King. Those are probably my favorites, and I’m scared to see their live-action versions.
Apparently, I didn’t remember the animated Lilo & Stitch very well. I thought they were pretty close to the original story, but according to my wife, they made a lot of changes. I thought the casting was pretty good, with a few folks returning from the 2002 film. Tia Carrere returns, but not as Nani (of course), and she has not aged well. I thought the new Nani, Sydney Agudong, did a pretty good job. She seems to be a decent actress.
Chris Sanders reprises his role as the voice of Stitch, and Jason Scott Lee makes a short cameo. He was the original voice of David. Zach Galifianakis was an excellent choice for Jumba, which I thought added some charm to the film.
All in all, it wasn’t a bad remake, but had it not been for special circumstances, I probably would have preferred to wait until the Disney+ release.
“The screen is a magic medium. It has such power that it can retain interest as it conveys emotions and moods that no other art form can hope to tackle.”
– Stanley Kubrick