𝒪'hana means family | an analysis on Lilo and Nani 𖦹.ᐟ

In honor of the new live action Lilo and Stitch movie coming out, I thought I could post an analysis on Lilo and Nani since they're like ... a really underrated sibling duo 

((Plus I just want an excuse to talk about them... 💔))

So enjoy this rambling that probably doesn't make any sense!! 

In 2002, Walt Disney released a movie that not only provided a heartfelt story of two Hawaiian sisters and an alien from outer-space, but also saved a corporation.



Lilo and Stitch was created by Chris Sanders and Dean DeBlois, the style and animation of the movie was inspired by the late 1990's Disney animation renaissance, (such as : The Lion King, Mulan, Beauty and the Beast, ect.)
The style was also heavily based on Dumbo. The watercolor backgrounds, the fluid and human-like animations, it's all very reinstatement of older Disney classics. Which just adds to the overall value of the film, the hand-drawn style gives the movie a comforting and welcoming feeling.

It's really upsetting that Lilo and Stitch was one of the last hand-drawn movies Disney released. I think the style is really appealing, the lack of sharp lines and the abundant amount of soft curves just makes the whole movie that much better

Lilo and Stitch contains a bunch of interesting characters, they all are so unique and odd in their own way; but they clash together so beautifully.

I'll only be talking about Lilo and Nani and their relationship in today's blog, but who knows, I might cover everyone else if I ever have time!!


Lilo, a six year old native Hawaiian girl, is shown throughout the film as being the 'odd one out'. She is often ostracized by her peers, and even adults in some cases. She's awkward**, uncomfortable, and just flat out odd.

* Real quick, I just want to talk about the Disney "Adorkable" (probably spelling that wrong :P) problem. Over the course of my research about this movie, I've seen a LOT of people compare Lilo to Disney's 2016 princess film protagonist, Moana, and to that I say.. I just don't see it!

Lilo is awkward, she doesn't have a good grasp on social skills and how to appropriately react to situations, but the movie doesn't show-case in a way that's 'cute' or 'funny', it shows it as being odd and off-putting. Which isn't a bad thing, don't get me wrong! I think it's great that Disney made Lilo weird, it gives her a prominent personality that we haven't seen since. *

Another thing I loved about Lilo's character is the way she is shown responding to grief and her hardships.

True to Disney, Lilo and Nani's parents passed away before the movie took place, which thrusted Nani into an early parenthood (more on that later!), and caused Lilo to begin to act out. (Though it wasn't the only factor that caused this acting out, it was more than likely a very big part to play in it.)

Throughout the film, Lilo is shown to have behavioral issues. She fights back against her peers, adults, and especially Nani. She acted out in response to her grief, rejection, and loneliness. She felt isolated by everyone due to her being herself.

Another reasoning as to why Lilo felt isolated was the place she lived. Lilo is a Native Hawaiian living in a place that caters towards tourists and travelers. She's viewed as a prop or some sort of exotic animal. In a deleted scene of the film, Lilo is racially harassed by tourists until she was able to find her ‘revenge’ and scare off some of the travelers.

While it’s a shame this part didn’t make it to the final cut, I think it’s a wonderful thing that the writers and artists took the time to respectfully replicate Hawaiian culture and their day to day lives. Nothing is overly romanticized, it feels real and organic, I think it accurately depicts an early 2000’s Hawaiian community and accurate body types; especially the women's bodies.

The artist created body-types I haven’t seen in a large majority of Disney films, and I am grateful for the work and time it took to make this film.

Back to Lilo; while this isn't a confirmed trait, I've seen lots of people on the autistic spectrum say they see themselves in Lilo.
Her troubles communicating with others around her, her unique fascinations, and difficulties making friends because of her peculiarity all fall in line with the experience of being autistic at a young age. You could call it accidentally representation (Which is a form of representations that occur unintentionally or without a deliberate intent.) since neither creator of the film hadn’t purposely intended to make Lilo autistic; but either way you look at it, her characterization clearly resonates with people, so I don’t think it matters if she is officially labeled as autistic or not.

Fortunately, Lilo has an amazing caretaker that doesn’t judge or ridicule her for her strangeness. 
Speaking of Lilo’s caretaker.

Nani is such an underrated Disney hero. Nani doesn’t fully understand all of Lilo’s quirks and special interests, but she doesn’t make fun of her for her weird antics and supports her little sister through thick and thin. Like hello? She’s the one that prints out all of Lilo’s tourist photos, she plays along with all of her (HARMLESS) antics, and advocates for Lilo when other people try to shut her down.

Something I noticed (and loved about Nani) is that she tries to explain things to Lilo in an easy to understand manner. Like for example, when they are at the pet adoption center, and Lilo asks about getting a pet lobster; Nani doesn’t tell her that lobsters aren’t pets or that it would be weird to have a lobster as a pet, she just explains to Lilo that they have a dog door, not a lobster door.
And later on in the film, when Nani gets fired from her job (which was 100% Lilo and Stitch’s fault) does she tell her little sister that it was all her fault? No. She just makes up a false story as to why she lost her job.

Nani not only had to take on a parental roll early on in life, she also had to put her own life on hold in order to properly take care of Lilo.
Fans of the film (As well as myself) noticed dozens of surfing awards and trophies on Nani’s wall, indicating that at one point in her life, she had an athlete career; which she would’ve had to give up after her parents death. 
Despite all the struggles life throws at her, Nani tries her best to give Lilo a good childhood all the while fighting to keep custody of her. 


Lilo and Nani’s relationship is far from perfect though, they butt-heads fairly often like most siblings do. They fight, call eachother names, and just plain out being petty with one another. But at its core, their relationship is one rooted in acceptance, support, and love in an environment that a child like Lilo needs.

It’s obvious that Lilo harbors guilt about her seemingly uncontrollable outbursts and actions, and that she wants to be a better sister so their dynamic speaks to her desire to change not simply just to fit in with the world around her (because no matter what, Nani will always support her.), but to change her behavior for the betterment of their relationship. In conclusion, while it's clear Lilo and Nani have their own problems, they both truly love one another and are there to support each other during thick and thin. O'hana means family, and Lilo and Nani are definitely an amazing example of a realistic and supporting family.