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As many families are heading into the theaters to watch the new Disney Lilo & Stitch movie, some may be leaving food for thought behind. I’m talking about family discussion – where parents have open conversation with their children about entertainment. A family discussion about movies, the story they tell, and even the themes within them are golden nuggets of wisdom to impart. You can read more about the value of family movie nights and discussions at Focus on the Family.

I want to offer you, my Ohana, this special family discussion guide for Lilo & Stitch movies. For years, I always reminisced about the deeper layers in movies. I would watch movies, making mental notes, and often thinking on it for days. For the first time, I am going to share some of those thoughts and questions with you. Are you ready to jump in?

Family Discussion Guide

Despite the term “Discussion Guide,” I believe that families can make time after a movie both engaging and fun. It doesn’t have to feel like you’re going to school to write an essay about the movie. Here are just a few family discussion guide ideas to make the family time feel open, encouraging, and rewarding for everyone:

1. Pre-Movie Engagement and Icebreakers

• Discussion Prompts on Expectations: Ask questions like, “What do you think makes a family special?” or “Have you ever made a new friend in an unexpected way?” Getting everyone to articulate their own definitions of family will resonate well when themes unfold on screen.
• Family Mosaic Activity: Invite each family member to share a quirky or heartfelt fact about what makes their family unique. Then, create a collage or “mosaic” (either physically with pictures and words or digitally) that spells out what “Ohana” means to them. This sets the stage for deeper conversations on family bonds.
• Character Guessing Game: Before watching, list a few hints about each character (e.g., “Who’s mischievous, has a heart of gold, and isn’t your typical pet?”). Ask kids to guess who the hints describe. This builds excitement and primes them to notice character traits during the movie.

3. Active During-Movie Reflections

• Scene Pause and Chat: Plan to pause the movie at key moments—a funny mishap of Stitch, a touching moment between Lilo and Nani, or an action scene involving space chases. Encourage family members to quickly share what they felt or predict what might happen next. This keeps conversations fresh and allows everyone to voice their thoughts as the story unfolds.
• Visual Journaling: Provide paper, markers, or a digital drawing tool so viewers (especially kids) can sketch key moments, characters, or their favorite scenes as they watch. Later, everyone can share their drawings and explain why that moment stuck with them.

3. Post-Movie Thematic and Reflective Discussion

Ohana Meaning and Family Values: Lead a discussion with questions such as:

• “What does ‘Ohana means family, and family means no one gets left behind’ mean to you personally?”

• “Can you recall a time when you or someone in our family showed unconditional support?”

• “How do you think Lilo, Nani, and Stitch show love and forgiveness?”

• Cultural Exploration: Take a moment to talk about the movie’s Hawaiian backdrop. Ask questions such as, “What new things did you learn about Hawaiian culture in this movie?” or “How do the traditions we see relate to the idea of community and family in our own lives?”
• Resilience and Forgiveness Conversations: Explore questions like, “Lilo and Nani face tough challenges throughout the movie. How did they overcome them, and what does that teach us about handling our own obstacles?” This invites personal reflection and deeper conversation on life lessons.

Lilo & Stitch Story Family Discussion

Would you like a more in-depth family discussion on Lilo & Stitch movie? Here are more questions to explore and discuss:

Family Discussion on Themes

• Friendship vs Loneliness – Talk about what friendship means to each member in the family. Was there a time when you felt lonely, or struggled to make friends? What did you do? How would you encourage someone who is struggling to feel accepted by others?

• Doing Right vs Wrong – Discuss what it means to do right vs wrong. If you were in Lilo’s situation, how might you have handled the interactions with other kids?

• Being Responsible – While we might not be facing dire circumstances like Nani, what would being responsible look like to you? Give an example of how each family member can help the Ohana by being responsible in small, meaningful ways.

• Loyalty and Love – What does being a loyal friend, neighbor, or family member look like? How can you be loyal and love those around you? What does it mean to love those who are difficult to love? How did Lilo show love to Nani and Stitch?

• Forgiveness – When have you ever been forgiven by someone you hurt? Have you had to forgive anyone? How did Lilo forgive Nani and Stitch, and they forgive her?
• Redemption – How did Stitch find redemption in the movie? Lilo?

Family Discussion from a Christian Perspective

Would you like to take the discussion to a deeper level? In the past, I have learned from other Christian families to always look at things from a Biblical perspective. For me, that meant looking at even movies from a Biblical worldview. It may be difficult to do for some films, but let’s try doing that here, with Lilo & Stitch!

• In the movie Lilo & Stitch, we see first off an alien council deeming Stitch (Experiment 626) as incapable of any good. How does the Bible depict us, as God’s creation? In what ways are we like Stitch? Instead of abandoning (or exiling) us, how has God decided to deal with our rebellion? BONUS: Look up the Scripture references for your answers.

• When Lilo is at hula class, she has an incident with another girl, and ends up being kicked out of the hula class. Talk about how sometimes we make poor choices, and have to pay the consequences. Discuss how sometimes God had to discipline the Israelites for their poor choices. BONUS: Discuss how we are not always being punished by God for misbehavior, nor are being “attacked by Satan” – but are merely facing the consequences for our actions.

• After a long, hard day, and lots of yelling, Nani tries to talk to Lilo and explains how sometimes people do bad things but that doesn’t mean they are bad. How does the Bible explain the war in us, between good and bad? What does the Apostle Paul say about this?

• The next day, Lilo goes to the animal shelter to pick out a new friend, and adopts Stitch thinking it is a dog. How has God adopted us into His family? What does the Bible tell us about this spiritual adoption?
  • Lilo shows Stitch his “badness level” and says they need to work on making him good. How does God help us to reduce our badness level? Do you think that people can be good without God?
  • Later in the movie, Lilo talks to Stitch about the Ugly Duckling. How are we like the Ugly Duckling, and how is God and our Christian brothers and sisters like the family of geese that find it?
  • Discuss what the Bible tells us about our spiritual family and how it relates to the idea of Ohana and Hanai depicted in the movie.

• At the end of the movie, we see Nani make the difficult decision to leave Lilo with Ms. Tutu, but we also see that she has the ability to visit with the portal. In what ways does this mirror how believers may be far from each other, but present in spirit? How does this also mirror heaven and being reunited with Christ in the end?

Closing Thoughts

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Have any suggestions for more family discussion questions or topics for Lilo and Stitch movie? Share in the comments at the bottom of page!