Lots of fun but still forgettable

Rating: 7/10 (6 July 2002)

I keep wondering: Where is Disney going? There was a time when each movie they made was as good or better than the one before, namely "The little mermaid", "The Beauty and the Beast", "Aladdin" and "The Lion King". That era is certainly over. They even used these for "Lilo & Stitch" advertising campaign.
"Lilo & Stitch" is 85 minutes of fun, kids and adults will like it just as any other of the last Disney movies, and as such is nowhere near becoming a memorable film like the other movies I mentioned. That's what I think Disney is missing. The best animation movies since "The Lion King" that came out under the Disney label were all Pixar's productions: the "Toy Story" movies, "A bug's life" and "Monsters Inc.".
Maybe the original idea was to make a movie about a character that was completely different than any other they've made before. I think that idea got lost in the way. From the trailers and advertising we got the impression that Stitch was going to be next to Bart Simpson as the most mischievous cartoon character of all, but it turned out to be a lot more subtle. What kept them?
I'm beginning to think that Disney will not be on the vanguard of animation again for a long time and instead will be following Dreamworks' steps. Too bad.