Lilo & Stitch (2002)
A Disney original story.
Dr. Jumba Jookiba, lead scientist of Galaxy Defence Industries, is convicted by the United Galactic Federation for illegal genetic experimentation; he has created Experiment 626, an aggressive and near-indestuctible creature with great learning capabilities. The Federation’s Grand Councilwoman tasks Captain Gantu to exile the experiment to an unpopulated asteroid, however it escapes and crash-lands on Kauaʻi, Hawaii where it is hit by a truck and placed in an animal shelter. The Federation's Grand Councilwoman offers Jumba an early release if he assists the council's Earth expert, Agent Pleakley, in capturing the experiment. It is revealed that the Earth is being used to re-populate mosquitoes which are considered an endangered species with humans being their food of choice.
Intro song ("He Mele No Lilo"). On the island, Nani Pelekai struggles to take care of her rambunctious but lonely younger sister, Lilo, after their parents died in a car crash. Social worker Cobra Bubbles expresses concern over whether Nani can take adequate care of Lilo, and threatens to place Lilo in foster care if their situation fails to improve. After overhearing Lilo praying for a friend, Nani decides to let her adopt a dog. At the animal shelter, Lilo takes interest in 626, who impersonates a dog to avoid Jumba and Pleakley, who have already landed on Earth. Despite Nani's doubts, Lilo adopts 626 and renames him "Stitch". Throughout the day, Stitch attempts to escape the island and live out his destructive programming, wrecking everything he touches. That evening, at the restaurant where Nani works, Jumba and Pleakley attempt to capture Stitch while in disguise. The owner blames the ensuing destructive chaos on Stitch and fires Nani. At night, Stitch continues to destroy everything at Lilo’s house but with nothing left to destroy and no higher programming, he’s unsure of what to do. Stitch discovers a book The Ugly Duckling and has Lilo explain it to him.
The next day, Bubbles repeats his earlier warning and tasks Nani with finding a new job and tasks Lilo with molding Stitch into a model citizen. Lilo teaches Stitch about Elvis Presley however this persistently ruin Nani's chances of finding work. Nani's friend David Kawena invites her, Lilo, and Stitch to enjoy a day of surfing to improve their mood (“Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride”). While Nani, Lilo, and Stitch ride a huge wave, Jumba and Pleakley try to capture Stitch, causing Stitch to unintentionally pull Lilo underwater. They survive, but Bubbles witnesses this event and decides to retrieve Lilo the following morning. As Nani explains to Lilo what will happen, she briefly sings (“Aloha Oe”). Feeling guilty over how much trouble he has caused, Stitch runs off into the night. The next morning, the Grand Councilwoman fires Jumba and Pleakley and gives the assignment to Captain Gantu, incidentally freeing them both to pursue Stitch using less covert methods. Meanwhile, David informs Nani of a job opportunity, which she rushes off to pursue. Hiding in the nearby woods, Stitch encounters Jumba and Pleakley, who chase him back to Nani's house. A fight between Stitch and Jumba culminates in an explosion that destroys the house. Nani sees the chaos and rushes back home to see Bubbles arrive to collect Lilo.
As Nani and Bubbles argue over Lilo's well-being, Lilo runs away into the woods and finds Stitch, who, in shame, reveals his alien identity before Gantu captures them. Stitch escapes from Gantu's ship but fails to rescue Lilo. Nani confronts him, having witnessed Lilo's kidnapping. Before he can explain, Jumba and Pleakley capture Stitch themselves. Nani demands that they help her rescue Lilo, but Jumba and Pleakley insist they only came for Stitch. When Nani breaks down, Stitch reminds her about ʻohana, a term for "family" he learned from her. Stitch convinces Jumba to help rescue Lilo. Jumba, Pleakley, Stitch, and Nani board Jumba's personal spaceship and pursue Gantu, rescuing Lilo.
Back on the shore, the Grand Councilwoman arrives to take Stitch into custody personally, and she fires Gantu for endangering Lilo and failing to capture Stitch. However, she realizes that Stitch is now civilized when he displays his newfound respect and compassion, and recognizes that Stitch is Lilo's legal property. The Grand Councilwoman decrees that Stitch will live out his exile on Earth, and that his family will be under the care of Bubbles, a former CIA agent who had previously met the Grand Councilwoman during the Roswell incident. Stitch, Jumba and Pleakley, having joined Lilo and Nani's family, rebuild their house with David and Bubbles' help.
TRIVIA
Visual Style
Lilo & Stitch features watercolor backgrounds as opposed to traditional gouache techniques like many other animated Disney films.
Much of the visual style of the film is based on Chris Sanders’ artwork which features more round shapes.
Character designs were based on Chris Sanders' personal drawing style, rather than the traditional Disney style. Chris Sanders came up with the character of Stitch in 1985. He also developed the character Toothless from the Dreamwork’s film How to Train Your Dragon.
Deleted Scene(s)
A deleted scene shows Stitch’s actions inadvertently leading to the untimely death of Pudge the fish, who Lilo feeds peanut butter sandwiches to in the beginning. This scene also features the graves of Lilo’s parents when Lilo buries Pudge.
Easter Egg(s)
In Nani’s room, a poster for the film Mulan is hanging on her wall.