Lilo & Stitch is a 2002 American film, released by Walt Disney Pictures on June 21, 2002. The forty-second animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics, it was written and directed by Chris Sanders and Dean DeBlois, and features the voices of Sanders, Daveigh Chase, Tia Carrere, David Ogden Stiers, Kevin McDonald, Ving Rhames, and Jason Scott Lee. Lilo & Stitch was the second of three Disney animated features produced primarily at the Walt Disney Feature Animation Florida studio located at Walt Disney World's Disney-MGM Studios in Orlando, Florida. The film was rated PG for "mild sci-fi action". Lilo & Stitch was nominated for the 2002 Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, which ultimately went to Hayao Miyazaki's film, Spirited Away (which also features the voice of Daveigh Chase in its English-language version). Though it did not win the Oscar, the film still received very positive reviews from critics and audiences alike and has gained a loyal cult following.
A direct-to-video sequel, Stitch! The Movie, was released in 2003. This was followed by a television series, Lilo & Stitch: The Series. A second direct-to-video sequel, Lilo & Stitch 2: Stitch Has a Glitch, was released in August 2005. A third and final direct-to-video sequel, Leroy & Stitch, was released in June 2006 as the conclusion to the TV series. There were two official games released to coincide with the movie, Disney's Lilo & Stitch for the Playstation and Disney's Stitch: Experiment 626 for the PlayStation 2. Stitch is a also summonable character in Kingdom Hearts II.
Lilo & Stitch was released on VHS and DVD December 3, 2002. A two-disc special edition version of the DVD was planned for release alongside the standard one-disc version, but was shelved and delayed for several years. The Lilo & Stitch special edition DVD was released in the United Kingdom on August 22, 2005, alongside the UK release of Lilo & Stitch 2, while the special edition was not released in the United States until March 24, 2009.
Plot
Dr. Jumba Jookiba is put on trial by the galactic governing body for illegal genetic experiments, including Experiment 626, an aggressive and cunning creature that is nearly indestructible. Jumba is imprisoned while 626 is set to be exiled on an asteroid. However, during transport on Captain Gantu's ship, 626 escapes to the planet Earth. The Grand Councilwoman orders Jumba to work with Agent Pleakley to recover 626 discreetly. 626 survives his escape attempt to Earth and lands in Hawaii, but is knocked unconscious by a passing truck, and is taken to an animal shelter believed to be a breed of dog.
After the recent death of their parents in a car accident, 19-year-old Nani Pelekai is looking after her younger, more rambunctious sister Lilo. They are visited by Cobra Bubbles, a social worker who is concerned that Nani cannot care for Lilo appropriately and is considering taking her into foster care, which Nani is fearful of, as Lilo is the only member of her family she has left. After hearing Lilo in her room pray for a friend (because Lilo has no 'real' friends as every girl in her class bullies her), Nani allows her to adopt a dog from the animal shelter, and Lilo immediately takes keen interest in 626 despite misgivings from Nani and the shelter. Lilo names 626 "Stitch", and shows him around the island; Stitch quickly discovers escape is impossible as he cannot swim. Nani is forced to bring Lilo and Stitch with her as she attempts to secure a job, while Lilo uses the time to try to curb Stitch's aggressiveness by making him behave as Elvis Presley. However, Stitch's antics, at times foiling Jumba and Pleakley's attempts to capture Stitch, ruin Nani's chances. David, Nani's "boyfriend", sees Nani at the beach, where she was trying to get a job as a life guard, and suggests they go surfing because they were having a bad day. While Nani, Lilo and Stitch ride on a huge wave Jumba makes one more effort to capture Stitch from underwater; as a result, it appears Stitch attempted to drown Lilo. Though everyone is safe on shore, Cobra saw the whole event and tells Nani he will be by in the morning to collect Lilo. After seeing how much trouble he has caused and how Lilo and Nani "had a chance til Stitch came along", he leaves with Lilo saying "I'll remember you though, I remember everyone who leaves".
The next morning, as Nani waits for Cobra to arrive, David tells Nani of a job offer that she must respond to, and she entrusts Lilo to remain at home while she goes to secure it. Stitch, hiding in the nearby woods, encounters Jumba, who reveals that he can never have a family or "belong" because he's just built to destroy and that Jumba was going to "Take him apart". Stitch races to Lilo's house, followed by Jumba who was firing at stitch with his gun, and the two fight, Lilo quickly calling on Cobra for help. The house is ultimately destroyed by the end of the fight, just as both Nani and Cobra return. As Nani And Cobra argue over Lilo's well-being, Lilo slips away to hide in the forest and finds Stitch, who reveals his true alien form to her. While she says how he ruined "everything", they are both captured by Captain Gantu, and he makes to leave Earth. Nani is shocked to see Gantu, seeing him putting Lilo and Stitch in a container pod and taking off in the ship. Stitch then escapes from the container before the ship takes off. Nani then realises Stitch isn't what she thought he was and demands him to talk just as Lilo said he always did. While again trying to capture Stitch both Jumba and Pleakley are revealed to Nani and tell her that they do know Lilo and they can both get her back.
Stitch, with help from Jumba's ship and by launching a gas tanker truck out of a volcano, he is able to free Lilo and stop Gantu. After they land, they find that the Grand Councilwoman has arrived nearby to arrest Stitch personally. However, when she sees Stitch hugging Nani and Lilo, she realizes he has become a civilized creature. Using Lilo's certificate of Stitch's ownership as proof, the Councilwoman asserts that Stitch is now a part of Nani and Lilo's family on Earth, and lets him live his exile on earth. As her guards take Gantu away, she doesnt let Pleakley or Jumba return on her ship, and orders Cobra, a former CIA agent who previously met the Councilwoman at Roswell, to keep an eye on the new family. Stitch, Jumba and Pleakley become integrated into Lilo's family, and the house is rebuilt with the help of the three.
Cast
Production
Lilo & Stitch is the sixth Disney animated feature to take place in the present day, following Oliver & Company. The movie was originally intended to take place in rural Kansas so that Stitch could interact with other characters while still being isolated from wreaking greater havoc.[1] A decision to change the film's setting to the Hawaiian island of Kauaʻi was an important choice in defining the plot more clearly. No other feature-length animated movie had ever taken place on any of the Hawaiian islands before.[1] In Sanders' words:
- "Animation has been set so much in ancient, medieval Europe—so many fairy tales find their roots there, that to place it in Hawaiʻi was kind of a big leap. But that choice went to color the entire movie, and rewrite the story for us."
While the animation team visited Kauaʻi to research the locale, their tour guide explained the meaning of ʻohana as it applies to extended families. This concept of ʻohana became an important part of the movie. DeBlois recalls:
- "No matter where we went, our tour guide seemed to know somebody. He was really the one who explained to us the Hawaiian concept of ʻohana, a sense of family that extends far beyond your immediate relatives. That idea so influenced the story that it became the foundation theme, the thing that causes Stitch to evolve despite what he was created to do, which is destroy."
The island of Kauaʻi had previously been featured in such films as Raiders of the Lost Ark and the Jurassic Park trilogy. The Disney animators faced the daunting task of meshing the film's plot, which showed the impoverished and dysfunctional life that many Hawaiians and other Westerners lived during the recent economic downturn, with the island's serene beauty. To give a brighter image to the film, the studio used watercolors to paint the backgrounds.
*A 1985 concept sketch of Stitch by creator Chris Sanders.
- Jason Scott Lee, who has Hawaiian ethnicity, co-wrote the dialogue for his character.
- Chris Sanders, one of the directors of the film, also served as co-screenwriter, co-character designer, and provided the voice of Stitch, a character he actually first created in 1985.
Trailers
Teaser trailers for this film parody trailers for other Disney films (two of these were animated by Sanders) from recent years. These are called "Inter-Stitch-als" and are featured on Disney's official site. The original actors were brought back to reprise their roles and were shocked when asked to act negatively towards Stitch. The trailers also include the AC/DC song track Back In Black.
- Beauty and the Beast: The Beauty and the Beast ballroom dance sequence begins as normal. However as the camera pans to the angels on the ceiling, Stitch is seen crawling across the painting. Watching Belle and the Beast, he crawls onto the chandelier, which falls, the Beast pulling Belle out of harm's way. The moment ruined, Belle announces she will be in her room. As she departs Stitch wolf whistles after her, to which she replies "Get your own movie!"
- The Little Mermaid: Ariel is singing the reprise of "Part of Your World", when a huge wave, which is being ridden by Stitch, dumps on her. As the ocean settles, Ariel pops up and throws a starfish at Stitch, saying "I was singing here!" This trailer was the most difficult to parody, as it wasn't animated in the CAPS system and had to be cleaned up by hand.
- Aladdin: Aladdin and Jasmine are interrupted in the middle of the "A Whole New World" sequence by the protagonist, Stitch. Stitch flirts with Jasmine and she drives off with him in his spaceship, leaving Aladdin sitting alone on the carpet, yelling at Stitch to "get [his] own movie".
- The Lion King: There are two versions of this commercial. In one of them, clips of past Disney classics are shown, with a voice over saying "For over seventy years, the Walt Disney studios has won the hearts of audiences with the most enchanting, delightful and lovable characters the world had ever known. On June 21st, the tradition...", and is suddenly cut off as Rafiki thrusts Stitch into the air in the manner of the presentation ceremony in the original film. A warthog (Not Pumbaa) cries out "Hey, that's not Simba!". All the animals flee, leaving Stitch alone on Pride Rock. Stitch clears his throat and roars unconvincingly. In the other commercial, the end of the song "Circle of Life" plays, Rafiki raising Stitch into the air on the last note. The rest of the parody plays out as the previous one, except that in this commercial, Timon (sitting on Pumbaa's back) is the one who yells "Hey, that's not Simba!".
Reception
The film opening at #2 with $35,260,212 in its first weekend, less than $500,000 behind the film Minority Report. In its second week, fell to #3, again behind the Spielberg film at #2. The film profited $145,794,338 in the United States and Canada, and $127,349,813 internationally, finishing with $273,144,151 in the world.
Lilo & Stitch received very positive reviews from critics and movie-goers alike, and to date has been the only Walt Disney Feature Animation/Walt Disney Animation Studios production released during the 2000s to meet with critical approval and make its cost back during its original theatrical run. The film's success at the box office and on DVD led to a franchise, with four direct-to-video sequels and a television series spanning two seasons. The film has received 139 critical reviews on the site Rotten Tomatoes, 119 positive and 20 negative, giving it a positive total rating of 86%.[2]
Peter M. Nichols states that through the character of Nani and her struggles the film appeals to older children better than such attempts by the studio to do so as Treasure Planet, Atlantis: The Lost Empire and The Emperor's New Groove.[3]
Soundtrack
The soundtrack of the film was released by Walt Disney Records on June 21, 2002.
Spin-offs
In 2003, Disney expanded the Lilo & Stitch franchise to include a TV series titled Lilo & Stitch: The Series. It ran for 65 episodes between September 20, 2003 and July 29, 2006. The series carried on where the movie left off and charted Lilo's efforts to capture and re-home Jumba's remaining experiments.
In March 2008, Disney announced that it is to produce a reimagined version of Lilo & Stitch, titled Stitch! and aimed at the Japanese market. The show, which began in October 2008, features a Japanese girl named Yuna (formerly referred to as Hanako) in place of Lilo, and is set on a fictional island in Okinawa prefecture instead of Hawaii. The series is produced by the Japanese animation house Madhouse LTD.[5][6][7]
See also
References
External links
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