The Disney animated movie that I watched for the first time last week was "Lilo & Stitch".
I knew a little
bit about the plot of the movie but not much, other than that Stitch was
an alien creature who little Lilo adopts as her “dog”. Part of my
interest in finally seeing the film is that there’s a segment in the
Disneyland show “Mickey and the Magical Map” that utilizes the song
“Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride”, and I really enjoy that entire sequence.
Generally, I enjoyed the film, even though I thought there were a lot of unanswered questions. I did find myself mostly uninterested in the aliens as a whole, maybe because for the most part, we never got to know them, and they were just a roll-call of different-looking creatures. I actually did like the mad scientist in the very early part of the film, but then I think his character stagnated.
I didn’t really find myself engaged in the film until Lilo shows up. She’s definitely cute, but I think there’s a lot that we don’t know about her. I would have actually liked to have known about her parents a little earlier. We obviously know something is up since she lives only with her sister Nani, and the social worker comes to check on them to make an assessment. The picture under her pillow is very sweet, but again, I would have liked to have known earlier. Also, they never come right out and say it, but it seems they were all in a car accident, and the parents were killed but Lilo and her sister survived? That would sort of explain her acting out, being late to rehearsal, not getting along with the other kids, getting overly physical with the one other girl, but the connection is never made between those events. At one point, Nani says to Lilo about the other kids, they don’t know what to say to you. Because of her parents’ death? Or because Lilo has some eccentric interests and thoughts that the other kids find weird? I don’t think it’s clear why Lilo doesn’t have any friends. Also, sometimes, she treats them like she doesn’t care about them at all, and then other times, she wants to be part of their group, and she refers to them as her “friends”, but there isn’t any instance shown when I would consider them remotely friends. I’m also wondering about the socio-economic ramifications of their interaction. At one point, the girls are playing with dolls which are obviously store-bought, and when Lilo pulls out her home-made doll, the girls recoil in horror. One thing that was funny is that at the beginning of the film, I’m watching, and then I’m startled when I notice a fish swimming by with what looks like a sandwich. Ummm, ok, weird. And then later, Lilo explains that she gives him a peanut butter sandwich every week. And my brain goes to: 1) How does the fish hold a sandwich? 2) How does the bread stay intact and not get soggy given that it’s plunged in water? 3) How did Lilo discover that the fish liked peanut butter? 4) Smooth peanut butter or chunky peanut butter? 5) Given Lilo’s affinity for Elvis Presley, wouldn’t she be giving the fish a peanut butter and banana sandwich? Or maybe fishie is allergic to banana? 5) Well, of course you can’t give him a tuna sandwich - that would be cannibalism!
I liked seeing the interaction between Nani and Lilo, and it was heartbreaking when Nani says she likes being her sister more than she likes being her mother. The accident must have happened not that long ago because Lilo doesn’t look that much different than she does in the picture under her pillow. And now, Nani, who’s not that old herself, has to figure out how to take care of Lilo as well.
I was really thrown off by the social worker. I never got comfortable with who he was, even though he’s eventually explained to be a former CIA agent. I kept waiting for something else to happen, like he’s part of some bigger secret thing, or maybe it turns out that he’s an alien as well. It was funny to discover that he’s the one who started the story that Earth is a protected planet because of the mosquitoes. I was trying to figure out who the voice was, and it had a bit of James Earl Jones quality but not exactly. Turns out it was Ving Rhames. Ahhh, makes sense then.
Quick note on the councilwoman - I was trying to figure out who was doing her voice, and it did have a Helen Mirren quality to it, but it turned out to be someone I’m not familiar with.
The best part of the film, obviously, is Stitch. He undergoes quite good character progression. He’s pretty rabid at the beginning of the film, but he does show himself to be very resourceful in his escape, and we’re told early on that he’s smart and super strong and learns very quickly, all in the service of being as destructive as possible. (Why would someone create a creature like that, whose sole purpose is to destroy? I guess because he’s a mad scientist.) You mostly see Stitch in his four-legged form, so I forgot that I’ve actually seen pictures of him in his six-legged form. When he pulled in the two legs, OUCHHHHHH, said my brain. It’s funny but appropriate that everyone else reacts to Stitch’s odd appearance, but Lilo completely accepts him as a dog, notwithstanding him doing many decidedly non-dog things. The thing that endeared me the most about Stitch is when he created San Francisco and then proceeded to Godzilla his way through it. Ahhhh, a dog ... ummm, extraterrestrial, after my own heart. And really, you can’t get more destructive than Godzilla. In addition to his character development through story, I think they did a really good job in his design. He’s definitely got the quintessential baby-like big eyes, which are very expressive, and he also uses his ears like a cat or dog to express emotion as well. Mischievous but endearing - what’s not to love? The only thing I didn’t like about Stitch was his speaking voice. I was fine with his laugh and sounds and such, but the talking voice just didn’t work for me.
I did catch the tribute to “Mulan”, a film released 4 years prior - the name of restaurant is called Mulan Wok. There is apparently also a poster of Mulan in Lilo’s bedroom, but I didn’t see that.
I absolutely *loved* the running gag with the tourist who keeps dropping his mint chocolate chip ice cream. And because mint chocolate chip is one of my favorite ice cream flavors, it kept making me want some. [So we went grocery shopping yesterday. And yes, I bought some mint chocolate chip ice cream.]
And I now understand why they add Elvis to Lilo and Stitch on the surfboard at it’s a small world during Christmas time.
I would definitely watch this movie again, mostly because Stitch is a lot of fun, and I liked watching Lilo too. Next time, maybe I’ll like the aliens better and maybe I won’t be as suspicious of Mr. Bubbles.
Generally, I enjoyed the film, even though I thought there were a lot of unanswered questions. I did find myself mostly uninterested in the aliens as a whole, maybe because for the most part, we never got to know them, and they were just a roll-call of different-looking creatures. I actually did like the mad scientist in the very early part of the film, but then I think his character stagnated.
I didn’t really find myself engaged in the film until Lilo shows up. She’s definitely cute, but I think there’s a lot that we don’t know about her. I would have actually liked to have known about her parents a little earlier. We obviously know something is up since she lives only with her sister Nani, and the social worker comes to check on them to make an assessment. The picture under her pillow is very sweet, but again, I would have liked to have known earlier. Also, they never come right out and say it, but it seems they were all in a car accident, and the parents were killed but Lilo and her sister survived? That would sort of explain her acting out, being late to rehearsal, not getting along with the other kids, getting overly physical with the one other girl, but the connection is never made between those events. At one point, Nani says to Lilo about the other kids, they don’t know what to say to you. Because of her parents’ death? Or because Lilo has some eccentric interests and thoughts that the other kids find weird? I don’t think it’s clear why Lilo doesn’t have any friends. Also, sometimes, she treats them like she doesn’t care about them at all, and then other times, she wants to be part of their group, and she refers to them as her “friends”, but there isn’t any instance shown when I would consider them remotely friends. I’m also wondering about the socio-economic ramifications of their interaction. At one point, the girls are playing with dolls which are obviously store-bought, and when Lilo pulls out her home-made doll, the girls recoil in horror. One thing that was funny is that at the beginning of the film, I’m watching, and then I’m startled when I notice a fish swimming by with what looks like a sandwich. Ummm, ok, weird. And then later, Lilo explains that she gives him a peanut butter sandwich every week. And my brain goes to: 1) How does the fish hold a sandwich? 2) How does the bread stay intact and not get soggy given that it’s plunged in water? 3) How did Lilo discover that the fish liked peanut butter? 4) Smooth peanut butter or chunky peanut butter? 5) Given Lilo’s affinity for Elvis Presley, wouldn’t she be giving the fish a peanut butter and banana sandwich? Or maybe fishie is allergic to banana? 5) Well, of course you can’t give him a tuna sandwich - that would be cannibalism!
I liked seeing the interaction between Nani and Lilo, and it was heartbreaking when Nani says she likes being her sister more than she likes being her mother. The accident must have happened not that long ago because Lilo doesn’t look that much different than she does in the picture under her pillow. And now, Nani, who’s not that old herself, has to figure out how to take care of Lilo as well.
I was really thrown off by the social worker. I never got comfortable with who he was, even though he’s eventually explained to be a former CIA agent. I kept waiting for something else to happen, like he’s part of some bigger secret thing, or maybe it turns out that he’s an alien as well. It was funny to discover that he’s the one who started the story that Earth is a protected planet because of the mosquitoes. I was trying to figure out who the voice was, and it had a bit of James Earl Jones quality but not exactly. Turns out it was Ving Rhames. Ahhh, makes sense then.
Quick note on the councilwoman - I was trying to figure out who was doing her voice, and it did have a Helen Mirren quality to it, but it turned out to be someone I’m not familiar with.
The best part of the film, obviously, is Stitch. He undergoes quite good character progression. He’s pretty rabid at the beginning of the film, but he does show himself to be very resourceful in his escape, and we’re told early on that he’s smart and super strong and learns very quickly, all in the service of being as destructive as possible. (Why would someone create a creature like that, whose sole purpose is to destroy? I guess because he’s a mad scientist.) You mostly see Stitch in his four-legged form, so I forgot that I’ve actually seen pictures of him in his six-legged form. When he pulled in the two legs, OUCHHHHHH, said my brain. It’s funny but appropriate that everyone else reacts to Stitch’s odd appearance, but Lilo completely accepts him as a dog, notwithstanding him doing many decidedly non-dog things. The thing that endeared me the most about Stitch is when he created San Francisco and then proceeded to Godzilla his way through it. Ahhhh, a dog ... ummm, extraterrestrial, after my own heart. And really, you can’t get more destructive than Godzilla. In addition to his character development through story, I think they did a really good job in his design. He’s definitely got the quintessential baby-like big eyes, which are very expressive, and he also uses his ears like a cat or dog to express emotion as well. Mischievous but endearing - what’s not to love? The only thing I didn’t like about Stitch was his speaking voice. I was fine with his laugh and sounds and such, but the talking voice just didn’t work for me.
I did catch the tribute to “Mulan”, a film released 4 years prior - the name of restaurant is called Mulan Wok. There is apparently also a poster of Mulan in Lilo’s bedroom, but I didn’t see that.
I absolutely *loved* the running gag with the tourist who keeps dropping his mint chocolate chip ice cream. And because mint chocolate chip is one of my favorite ice cream flavors, it kept making me want some. [So we went grocery shopping yesterday. And yes, I bought some mint chocolate chip ice cream.]
And I now understand why they add Elvis to Lilo and Stitch on the surfboard at it’s a small world during Christmas time.
I would definitely watch this movie again, mostly because Stitch is a lot of fun, and I liked watching Lilo too. Next time, maybe I’ll like the aliens better and maybe I won’t be as suspicious of Mr. Bubbles.
And now that I'm caught up in real time to my viewing schedule, I will post a review every Tuesday of the Disney animated film that I watched for the first time the prior week. Thanks!
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment