This week's Throwback Thursday Review is over Lilo & Stitch to tie in with the release of Moana yesterday. I originally planned to review Frozen but I felt Lilo & Stitch was more similar considering both take place in Pacific islands, are Disney animated releases and I also figured it might be better to save my thoughts on Frozen for Frozen 2. Next week I will speeding off to begin another series of reviews for a major franchise with my thoughts on The Fast and the Furious. Reviews you can expect for the remainder of the year include Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk, Moana, Allied, Rules Don't Apply, Miss Sloane, La La Land, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Collateral Beauty, Passengers, Sing, Assassin's Creed, Fences, and Throwback Thursday Reviews over The Fast and the Furious, West Side Story, 2 Fast 2 Furious, The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift, and Fast & Furious.
'Lilo & Stitch' Review
Nominated For: Best Animated Feature.
Lilo & Stitch opens with an intergalactic trial for Dr. Jumba Jookiba concerning his creation of Experiment 626, an alien mutation whose sole purpose is destruction. Jumba is adjudged insane while 626 is sentenced to exile on a meteor. However, 626 wittingly escapes and ends up on Earth only to meet a young girl named Lilo who adopts him as her own, naming him Stitch and teaching him the importance of belonging and giving him a greater sense of purpose.
The animated feature is written and directed by Dean DeBlois and Chris Sanders, who bring crucial themes about family to the surface in a fun hijinks extra-terrestrial meets earthling story, think Disney's Hawaiian E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial. The screenplay's quite sophisticated and deep for a family film with focus on being an outsider and finding a family you belong in while also telling a engaging tale families can enjoy.
Lilo & Stitch has just the right tonal blend of humor and sorrow to pluck your heartstrings. The film also features tender and joyous compositions from Alan Silvestri, who's best known for composing memorable scores for Forrest Gump, The Avengers, and Captain America: The First Avenger, including the infectiously delightful original songs "Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride" and "He Mele No Lilo" in addition to the score itself. Lilo & Stitch also finds itself paying tribute to the King of Rock & Roll by including a number of Elvis Presley's biggest hits such as "Hound Dog" and "Can't Help Falling in Love" and doing so admirably for fun sequences and a few sentimental moments.
The animation found in Lilo & Stitch is a wonder to behold as animators effectively bring the lush Hawaiian landscape, expansive Pacific surrounding Hawaii, and unique character design to the big screen. One element that makes Lilo & Stitch click together is the talented voice cast.
Writer and director Chris Sanders lends his voice to Stitch, executing the impossible by transitioning 626 from a deranged intergalactic fugitive with no place in the galaxy to an adorable fluff ball with a sense of purpose and family everyone can root for. Daveigh Chase voices Lilo and plays her as the sympathetic oddball the audience can identify with, making the perfect companion for Stitch's exploits and adventures.
The supporting cast has it's fair share of eccentric characters including loving sister Nani, compassionate friend David, the mad scientist Dr. Jumba, paranoid Earth expert Pleakly, the composed Galactic Federation's Grand Council Woman, temperamental Galactic Federation Captain Gantu, and stoic government agent Cobra Bubbles voiced by Tia Carrere, Jason Scott Lee, David Ogden Stiers, Kevin McDonald, Zoe Caldwell, Kevin Michael Richardson and Ving Rhames respectively.
In conclusion, Lilo & Stitch at it's core is a heartfelt story about the importance of family with gorgeous animation, charming characters expressed by a gifted ensemble voice cast, and a diverse soundtrack that all amounts to one of my favorite animated films.
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