Lilo & Stitch Review: Finally, a Disney live-action remake that doesn’t make you miss the cartoon (too much)

Lilo & Stitch Review: Story – Stitch, an alien from a faraway planet, is an abomination created by a scientist who wanted to build a powerful machine for destruction. When the planet’s council decides to destroy Stitch, he somehow saves himself and lands on Earth. On Earth, Lilo is a little girl who is lonely and about to see her family completely fall apart. She befriends the alien, names it Stitch, thinking it’s a dog she can pet. Soon, reality hits and the lives of Lilo and everyone around her turn upside down. But will Stitch be saved? Will Lilo finally have a family again?

Lilo & Stitch Review:

Disney’s obsession with turning their library of animated classics into live-action movies is a fact that many around the world are frustrated with. This obsession in recent years has resulted in more disappointment than entertainment. Remember when Snow White’s live-action adaptation turned the Dwarves into some “just by the way” extras? That’s exactly why there’s a trust deficit with the studio’s animated-to-live-action adaptations. Following that, the studio released the live-action adaptation of Lilo & Stitch, a 2002 animated classic originally written and directed by Dean DeBlois and Chris Sanders, who also wrote How to Train Your Dragon.

So, when there are such big shoes to fill, how can one fully trust the studio to deliver a knockout film? Having now seen it, Lilo & Stitch (2025) is certainly not a knockout. But having said that, it is a movie with its heart in the right place, and the oh-so-adorable Maia Kealoha might just make you forgive the studio for its past missteps. Lilo & Stitch was a classic because it wasn’t quintessentially set in the world of white people—the references and cultural digs, which you’ll also find in the 2025 film, were refreshing. The film managed to seep the Disney fable into the Hawaiian world. It was a fresh change. Add to that the animation, which was far superior to anything AI can create today. Now the 2025 movie has to top all that and revive the genre for Disney. Meanwhile, watch all these fresh releases on Lionsgate, Zee5, and more.

Directed by Dean Fleischer Camp and written by Chris Kekaniokalani Bright and Mike Van Waes, Lilo & Stitch is a safe but mostly charming remake of a classic. To emphasize why it is safe, the movie does not take risks with revamping, reshaping, or adding new perspectives to any character or story arc. There’s no attempt to bring in current political conversations or reshape the blueprint of anything involved. It is a complete beat-for-beat remake of the 2002 animated movie that audiences love.

This brings a good vibe to the movie because you know the story, you’ve seen it, and you know what’s about to happen—but this time it’s live-action. The pressure is on the actors playing these beloved parts. Maia Kealoha as Lilo delivers the cutest performance you’ll see on the big screen for a long time. Chris Sanders, who also directed, wrote, and voiced Stitch in the 2002 movie, returns and does a phenomenal job this time around as well. But Billy Magnussen as Pleakley is the standout performance.

While the familiar story and lack of changes make Lilo & Stitch a decent watch with a lot of heart, the big question remains: did we really need this movie if it has nothing new to say? Any addition to an old classic should ideally aim to advance the story or at least take it in a new direction. That said, films like Lilo & Stitch are needed now, in a world where war is a trending topic and hope feels bleak. The core value of these stories is ‘Ohana’ and the hope that comes with it. Any story that fuels that hope for a better world deserves to be promoted, and this one comes just in time.

However, one thing Lilo & Stitch doesn’t get right is the balance between the alien world and Earth. When they collide, apart from Stitch and Lilo, everything else feels bland and lacking vibrancy. While this should be the most gripping part of the film, it ends up being very basic, pulling you out of the experience.

Lilo & Stitch Review: Final Verdict

Lilo & Stitch arrives at a time when the world needs an abundance of hope and is finally a Disney animated live-action attempt that works. Even if not completely perfect, it manages to stay afloat and not succumb to the pressure of evolving.

Lilo & Stitch hits theaters on May 23, 2025. Stay tuned to OTTplay for more information on this and everything else from the world of streaming and films.