Newcomer Maia Kealoha plays Lilo, an outsider mourning the loss of both her parents while living with her sister Nani (Sydney Agudong). She is a precocious little girl whose behaviour and manner borders on the annoying but you can see the inherent goodness underneath. When the outcast blue alien Stitch comes into her life, it’s a perfect match.

The fact that both are troublemakers and free spirits plays into the film’s central theme of not judging people before you get to know them and seeing the goodness even in the displaced. This also powers the comedic momentum of the story and there are numerous laugh-out-loud moments as the two ramp up the chaos.

While missing the outright charm of the original (aided by its cute hand-drawn animated look), this new version has its own virtues, chief of which is its seamless integration of live action with computer-generated imagery. There is a wholesomeness that will please parents and leave behind a lingering positive message.
Rob Hudson
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The eagerly anticipated film, a live-action reimagining of Disney’s 2002 animated classic, will open exclusively in Australian cinemas May 22, 2025.

“Lilo & Stitch” is the wildly funny and touching story of a lonely Hawaiian girl and the fugitive alien who helps to mend her broken family. The film is directed by award-winning filmmaker Dean Fleischer Camp, with a screenplay by Chris Kekaniokalani Bright and Mike Van Waes, and stars Sydney Elizebeth Agudong, Billy Magnussen, Tia Carrere, Hannah Waddingham, Chris Sanders, with Courtney B. Vance, and Zach Galifianakis, and introducing Maia Kealoha.

“Lilo & Stitch” is produced by Jonathan Eirich, p.g.a. and Dan Lin, with Tom Peitzman, Ryan Halprin, Louie Provost, Thomas Schumacher serving as executive producers.

“Lilo & Stitch” opens exclusively in cinemas May 22, 2025.
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Roberts is the loving parent of Ben (played in a star turn by Lucas Hedges) who is home for the holidays. Ben, an ex-junkie in recovery brings a lot of baggage with him. This manifests itself in mother and son getting pulled back into the dark world of drugs, those that sell and those that use.

It’s at this point in the proceedings that the story changes tract and morphs into thriller mode. The tension rises and rises as the mother refuses to give up on her son. There are a number of unexpected twists and most of these come from the curve balls the script throws Roberts.

The resilience and love shown from mother to son is the main take away from the film, however it does not shy away from showing the human cost brought on by Ben’s addiction. This is tempered by the reality of how truly awful the lives of those with addictions problems become in the current climate. These are humanitarian problems and should be treated as such, not just as a legal issue.

Rob Hudson
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The movie is set in a futuristic Japan, where an outbreak of “dog flu” has necessitated a mass canine quarantine by the government. A young boy pilot named Atari Kobayashi flies to the island to find his sequestered dog, while the evil Mayor Kobayashi tries to stop him. You can also expect to see a raggedy one-eyed pup whose heart will presumably grow by the end of the movie, a teenage crush, and at least a few sniffing jokes.

There’s also a massive number of famous people voicing characters in the movie, including Edward Norton, Bill Murray, Scarlett Johansson, Bryan Cranston, Tilda Swinton, Greta Gerwig, Frances McDormand, Jeff Goldblum, Harvey Keitel, Liev Schreiber, F. Murray Abraham, Courtney B. Vance, Bob Balaban, and Yoko Ono.

Isle of Dogs comes out on March 23rd, 2018.
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