7 of 10 stars. Another Disney non-musical.

Rating: 7/10 (13 July 2002)

When one thinks animated feature' (at least in the North American sense), one conjures up a musical rendition of an adapted fairy tale or legendary story. Disney has been largely successful with that format in the past, and they seem to be diverging from it. They brought us the hilarious antics in `The Emperor's New Groove' which was furthest from that format. Now they bring us another break from the pack, `Lilo & Stitch'.
Experiment 6-2-6' was designed by an alien race to be a super-soldier of sorts. An artificial life deemed to be unsafe it is condemned to imprisonment. However, it's clever enough to elude its captors, escapes, and crash-lands on Earth. The landing target is, of all places, Hawaii where it is adopted by a young girl named Lilo (pronounced LEE-lo'). She is unaware of the creature's origins, mistakes it for a strange dog, and names him `Stitch'. The story follows Lilo and Stitch (hence the title) as Lilo struggles with her broken family life (being raised by only her older sister), and Stitch adapts to life on Earth, while attempting to avoid capture by the society from which he escaped.
I found this film to be as entertaining to me, as the children in the theatre found it. The relationships in this movie are those that children can relate with. Stitch's adapting to life in Hawaii is one that comes off quite comical, and routinely unexpected. His social skills are lacking, and he reacts quickly, without thought, which is the source for the comedy. I found myself laughing out loud at several of Stitch's antics, and his overall character behaviour really doesn't grow tiring.
The movie does take an emotional side too as Lilo confronts her broken home and grows attached to Stitch, who ultimately is threatened with his own capture. Although it could have gotten completely sappy at the end, it doesn't, which is refreshing. Of course, it is a Disney feature, so a happy ending is always expected, but it's a light one complementing the light-hearted romp of this movie.
Granted, it's not Disney's platinum achievements, nor is it an AMAZING story but given the low-key promotion this movie has had, it might slip by you un-detected. My recommendation is that you do not let this happen. It's completely suitable to go to with children, or as a date flick, or even with a buddy.