Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
Daveigh Chase | ... | Lilo (voice) | |
Chris Sanders | ... | Stitch (voice) (as Christopher Michael Sanders) | |
Tia Carrere | ... | Nani (voice) | |
David Ogden Stiers | ... | Jumba (voice) | |
Kevin McDonald | ... | Pleakley (voice) | |
Ving Rhames | ... | Cobra Bubbles (voice) | |
Zoe Caldwell | ... | Grand Councilwoman (voice) | |
Jason Scott Lee | ... | David Kawena (voice) | |
Kevin Michael Richardson | ... | Captain Gantu (voice) | |
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Susan Hegarty | ... | Rescue Lady (voice) |
Amy Hill | ... | Mrs. Hasagawa (voice) | |
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Steve Alterman | ... | (voice) |
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Emily Anderson | ... | Woman (voice) |
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Jack Angel | ... | Alien Guard (voice) |
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Bill Asing | ... | Man (voice) |
In a place far, far away, illegal genetic experiment #626 is detected: Ruthless scientist Dr. Jumba Jookiba has created a strong, intelligent, nearly indestructible and aggressive being with only one known weakness: The high density of his body makes it impossible for the experiment to swim in water. The scientist is sentenced to jail by the Grand Council of the Galactic Federation. The experiment is supposed to be transported to a prison asteroid, yet manages to escape Captain Gantu, who was supposed to deliver him there. With a stolen police cruiser (the red one), the destructive being races towards a little and already doomed planet: Earth. Stranded on Hawaii, experiment #626 can't actually do much harm: water all around, no big cities and two well-equipped representatives of the Galactic Federation already following close behind to catch him again. But Dr. Jookiba and the Earth expert Pleakley never could have guessed that earth girl Lilo adopts the experiment as dog, gives him ... Written by Julian Reischl <julianreischl@mac.com>
It feels like ages since Disney gifted us with numerous gems like 'Bambi', 'The Little Mermaid', 'The Lion King' etc (to name only a few) but things haven't been going too well for them in the last 20ish years. The other day I saw 'Tarzan and Jane' and I was mortified at how awful it was. Not just in term of its content, but even the animation looked very amateur. 'Lilo and Stitch' is a gem to have emerged from Disney after a long long time. Sadly, Disney has gone back to churning the usual crap and the success of trash like 'High School Musical' can assure us that we cannot expect anything great from Disney for a while longer.
'Lilo and Stitch' presents a very new style of animation with a new story. The characters, setting and music are all very refreshing. It's quite a nice touch of Disney to reintroduce Elvis to the younger generation. I loved most of the songs including Wynonna's version of 'Burning Love'. the only song i hated was A-Teens version of 'Fools Rush In'. Those bitches totally ruin that song. I didn't listen to the rest of the songs during the end credits but i hear that those too have been ruined by non-talents of the current-day. The setting in Hawaii is beautiful. I know it's only animation but it makes one want to go live there. The Hawaiian culture is very nicely portrayed.
The characters are very unique, real and lovable. We can recognize the little brat we once were in Lilo. She's a brat and gives her sister one hell of a time but also has a soft spot. She clearly loves her sister and is pretty much a lonely child. The sisters relationship was very real. Nani is pretty much the sole guardian struggling to make a living and raise her sister. This was also another point that 'Lilo and Stitch' lightly tackle, real life situations where an elder sister is trying to be a good parent to her little sis while she is also threatened by a social worker and tries to balance her worklife and life at home (which is clearly dysfunctional). At the same time we also see that she hardly has time for any romantic relationships. Stitch is one of the most unique characters of a Disney film. He is pretty much like an outsider who doesn't get along with anyone in the beginning, mostly through faults of his own but gradually forms a close bond with Lilo and Nani (kind of like me when I was a teen except that instead of Lilo and Nani I had a few good friends). The voice cast (that includes names like Tia Carrere, David Ogden Stiers Ving Rhames and even Chris Sanders who created the film) do a fine job giving life to their characters.
'Lilo & Stitch' is sheer entertainment. It tackles some relevant themes such as family value, the need to belong and unconditional love but it is well handled and doesn't do it in a way that will bore the kids. It's as much a movie for kids as it is for adults. It all started with Chris Sanders's (who also dubbed for Stitch) idea and he deserves full credit for it. Just think of the beautiful line often repeated in the film. 'Ohana means family, and family means NO ONE gets left behind'. Simple words yet such a powerful line. And it's coming from a Disney film. A real gem indeed.