Is “Lilo & Stitch” ‘A Travesty’ Or ‘Disney’s Best Live-Action Remake Yet’? Critics Can’t Seem To Agree

“Did you ever wonder what Lilo & Stitch would look like if it was live-action, a lot longer and not quite as good? If you did, you’re thinking like a Disney executive. The House of Mouse has been chewing away at its own foundations for nearly two decades now and it’s found something else to gnaw on.”

“[The original animated film] works so well because of its wily combination of packaging and messaging. But it also works significantly less well when that packaging changes, switched from bright and bubbly animation to a live-action setting that can’t help but constantly remind viewers of the supposed reality of the situation.”

“Whether through some (relatively subtle) plot adjustments or just by dint of flipping the story into the flesh-and-blood realm, Lilo & Stitch has been tamed into one of those naughty-pet family comedies that used to roll off studio production lines with thud-thudding regularity, until the form fell out of fashion somewhere around 1994.”

“This [film] settles on being a fine retread instead of a rabble-rousing romp. Stitch, in his own peculiar way, sums it up perfectly: This Lilo & Stitch is ‘broken but still good’. Even if it’s ultimately an unnecessary new take on a chaotic masterpiece.”

“At its core, this new version of Lilo & Stitch is the same as its animated predecessor, but most crucially (and surprisingly), it’s also interested in telling a deeper story that shades in much of Lilo and Nani’s grief with colours that imbue the project with a glorious richness.”