Lilo & Stitch: 3-Disc Special Edition

Director: Chris Sanders, Dean DeBlois, Michael LaBash, Tony Leondis,
Starring: Chris Sanders, Daveigh Chase, Tia Carrere, David Ogden Stiers, Kevin McDonald, Ving Rhames, Jason Scott Lee, Dakota Fanning,

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DVD Review

Lilo & Stitch (2002) was conceived as a new wave of smaller, less expensive movies originating from an idea Chris Sanders had for a children’s book. He was a storyboard artist for Disney and his drawings for movie provided the basis for its look. The resulting movie was a commercial and critical hit, garnering an Academy Award nomination.

On the planet Turo, Dr. Jumba (Stiers) is accused of illegal genetic experimentation. He pleads his innocence, claiming his work is all theoretical. However, it is revealed that he has actually created a new species that is fireproof and bulletproof. It’s strong and has been bred to destroy everything in his path. He calls it Experiment 626 (Sanders) and after Jumba’s trial, manages to escape. It crash-lands on Earth, pursued by the fearsome Captain Gantu, Agent Pleakley (McDonald) and Dr. Jumba. 626 surfaces on Hawaii and blends in (sort of) by masquerading as a dog who is found, adopted and renamed Stitch by a little girl named Lilo (Chase) and her sister Nani (Carrere). However, the ornery alien has trouble fitting in.

Setting the movie in Hawaii offers the opportunity for a vibrant color scheme that is complimented by a selection of vintage Elvis Presley songs. Lilo & Stitch explores the notion of family and sticking with them through thick and thin, good times and bad. There is a nice mix of comedy and sci-fi action and adventure.

Stitch Has A Glitch (2005) is a direct-to-video sequel that sees Stitch suffering from nightmares that are manifestations of fears that he’ll turn bad again. Lilo (Fanning) has three days to create an original hula for a local competition in observance of the May Day Celebration. The only problem is that she doesn’t have a mother to help her make an outfit. So, he enlists the help of Stitch, her sister, Dr. Jumba and Pleakley.

Fans of Lilo & Stitch will like this sequel as it manages to preserve much of its heart and humor. Most of the major characters return in this entertaining family movie.

Special Features:

Lilo & Stitch’s colorful look is preserved on the Blu-Ray disc. The transfer looks very good, retaining its filmic visuals rather nicely. For a direct-to-video sequel, Stitch Has A Glitch also looks excellent. Both of these movies are welcome upgrades from their DVD predecessors.

All of the extras are included on the DVD versions of their respective movies.

Lilo & Stitch features an audio commentary by producer Clark Spencer and directors Chris Sanders and Dean DeBlois. They start off discussing the movie’s original opening involving Stitch being pursued by his gang. Sanders talk about how they changed it and how it altered the entire movie. This is an engaging and informative track as they take us through the making of the movie.

“Your Ohana” is a music video that features clips from the movie.

“Lilo & Stitch Island Adventure Games” has you collect experiments all over the island via three separate games.

“DisneyPedia: Hawaii – The Islands of Aloha” is a visual tour of the islands the compromise Hawaii with clips and factoids.

“Create Your Own Alien Experiment Game” sees you helping Dr. Jumba create three new experiments.

“A Stitch in Time: Follow Stitch Through the Disney Years” is an amusing faux look at Stitch’s “history” by inserting him in classic Disney movies.

“Hula Lesson” teaches you how to do Hawaii’s famous dance.

“Burning Love – Behind the Scenes with Wynonna” takes a look at Wynonna Judd recording the song that plays over the end credits.

The music video for “I Can’t Help Falling in Love with You” by A-Teens features standard clips from the movie with the band performing.

“Animating the Hula” takes a look at how the filmmakers depicted the hula dance in their movie in fascinating detail.

Stitch Has a Glitch starts of with “Hawaiian Rollercoaster Ride,” a music video by Jump5 featuring footage of these kids performing with clips from the movie.

“The Origin of Stitch” is a short film that chronicles the little alien’s creation.

“Where’s Pleakley?” has you and/or a friend have to try and find the alien in a crowded picture.

Finally, “Jumba’s Experiment Profiler” has you helping out the doctor to update his database of experiments.

J.D. Lafrance

J.D. is a freelance writer who is currently doing research for a book on the films of Michael Mann. He likes reading anything written by Jack Kerouac, James Ellroy, J.D. Salinger, Harlan Ellison or Thomas Pynchon. J.D. is currently addicted to the T.V. series 24 and enjoys drinking a lot of Sprite. This is not a blatant plug for the beverage but if they ever decided to give him a lifetime supply he certainly wouldn’t turn them down.
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