Lilo and Stitch was so cute + a free colouring page for you cause <3
Thanks for opening this email, I love you! This week: a review of Lilo & Stitch *mild spoilers*, some new trailers + other fun stuff.
Lilo & Stitch is a super cute film and while it isn’t as charming as the OG cartoon, it’s a nostalgic, familiar remake that sincerely explores themes of family and belonging. There’s been a lil controversy with the plot changes, but I didn’t mind them and found the overall vibe to be uplifting.
Starring: Sydney Elizebeth Agudong, Billy Magnussen, Chris Sanders, Zach Galifianakis, Maia Kealoha
Plot: A six-year-old orphaned girl wishes for a friend and the universe sends her a space alien-experiment gone wrong instead.
Also: Here is a bonus colouring page from my talented other half who cried during the film:
(It’s a pdf so you can print it out as many times as you want!!)
Lilo & Stitch leans into nostalgia heavily and some reworked plot points but for me it was cute enough to work.
Maia Kealoha plays 6-year-old Lilo and she was discovered after the producers went through 800 audition tapes, and it shows - she’s funny, energetic and believable without committing the cardinal sin of being annoyingly precocious. The kids in our cinema were squealing and laughing so much in the scenes with her and Stitch!
The remake follows the same plot beats as the original. CGI Stitch is pretty good - given how bad some CGI slop can be, Stitch looks super cuddly and tangible and he isn’t suffering from uncanny valley or anything terrifying. He’s realistic enough to induce audience emotion, especially the peak of the third act (THERE WERE TEARS FRIENDS).
The film does cut a few things out of the film, noticeably, Captain Gantu, but perhaps most erroneously, drag Pleakly:
I liked what the film did with Jumba (Galifianakis) and Pleakley (Magnussen) bar that omission, they were both funny and have a bit of a buddy cop comedy feel. BUT while we get a little bit of Pleakley dressing up (in the bathtub with his hair net, in floral overalls!), it doesn’t hit nearly as much like the cartoon fashion icon Pleakley did.
Like Disney’s other live-action remakes, this film inserts new scenes into the story, including Stitch’s initial landing and the chaos he causes while crashing a wedding, Lilo’s sister Nani’s attempts to find work and her dreams of becoming a marine biologist. There’s been some controversy with the film’s ending, but I found I didn’t mind it and feel like it still kept the message of family pretty accurate (let me know if you thought otherwise)!
I liked in the OG cartoon how Lilo really struggled to fit in and she basically just wants a friend. While the new takes the crux of this, I felt the cartoon did it with more heart because it was so original and delved more deeply into Hawaiian culture and traditions when it was released at the time.
Overall I had a great time!! My only question — is Stitch in Avengers Doomsday?
🐕 Are there dogs in the film? 🐕 yes
🎄 Is it set at Christmas? 🎄 no
👗 Who is the best dressed? 👗 Pleakley
Other stuff I liked this week:
✿ They’re filming the new Godzilla x Kong in Brisbane right now (if anyone reading is in charge - can I please have a job?)
✿ Pedro Pascal said most the devastating thing about TimTams (at least for Aussies).
✿ Panda the Dog wins the 2025 Palm Dog at Cannes, this meme from Cannes
✿ Catherine Martin’s short film for Miu Miu, Grande Envie stars Wilem Dafoe and Daisy Ridley
✿ Jurassic World Rebirth looks like Alien Romulus crossed with dinos, imho I hope it goes full horror!
🐶 Rey Pupdate 🐶
Rey having too much cake at her bf(f)’s birthday party:
Thanks so much for reading! Warmest virtual hugs <3
Thuy