I love Stitch, and I love the movie. This will forever hold a special place in my heart and memories, for several reasons. Among these, this was the movie that re-kindled my interest in animation as a valid means of story-telling for all ages, not just for kids, and brought home the point that animated characters can be just as interesting, just as developed and just as realistic, if you will, as live-action characters portrayed by actors. Before this movie, which drew me in the moment I first saw the trailers on tv, I was of the opinion shared by many in this part of word-animation was only for little kids, and no self-respecting adult would watch it, not unless being forced to sit through it with a child, anyway.
Even more importantly, though, Lilo and Stitch cemented a belief in me that people CAN change. In the tradition of Les Miserables, we are introduced to the “villain”, a vicious, bad-tempered, super-strong and super-smart and uber-destructive, genetically-engineered hell-hound, who was intentionally created for the sole purpose of wrecking havoc and who had few redeeming qualities other than he could look cute…when he wasn’t snarling, slobbering and snapping, that is! Through the power of unconditional love and patience, we see this little alien devil-beast transform into a loving and valued member of a family, something he was not supposed to be able to do, something which perplexed even his “evil genius” creator, who himself winds up being softened and transformed by what he sees happening to his Experiment 626. Stitch was a being who was designed and created for evil and destruction, yet even HE was able to change, so what must that say for those who have turned to negative behavior due to circumstances and choices? Yes, I know that Stitch’s “badness level” was largely played out for laughs, but in Chris Sanders’ original screenplay, he was a much “darker” and more trully sinister figure. Even still, though, once a member of the “o’hana”, Stitch still kept his “edge”; he didn’t turn into a total, angelic Goody-Two-Shoes who would come off as boring. There was still just enough of that “badness level” left to make him seem all the more real and more interesting, allowing his character arc to be more plausible. Chris Sanders and Dean DeBlois had pulled off something that no one in animation, especially no one at Disney, had even tried-starting out with the movie’s “Bad Guy” and showing his gradual transformation into someone we would all want to welcome into our own homes, instead of the usual “once good, always good; once bad, always bad” message pushed by most animated Disney movies. And guess what? People didn’t find it boring or uninteresting or too unrealistic, and they flocked to see this movie in droves, again and again.
Chris will surely be missed at Disney.
pitbulllady
