"Lilo and Stitch" is mostly a movie about family. But unlike the traditional Disney films on the subject, this film looks at it from the starting point of being broken. There are no parents, which is not uncommon in Disney films. However, in this case we know the reason they are not present, and the movie is built upon an environment that feels their absence strongly. The remaining family members, Lilo and Nani, suffer a strained relationship as each is forced to reassess the role the other has to take. Lilo must view Nani as a mother, even though she "liked [her] better as a sister", and Nani in turn is required to treat Lilo as a daughter. The two represent the closest thing this movie has to a traditional family, though suffering a tremendous gap with the lack of "true" parental figures.
The lack of standard family environments is the driving force behind the movie. Firstly, in the case of Nani and Lilo, this absence results in disobedience, aggression, and strong feelings of loneliness on the part of Lilo, and intense difficulty with responsibilities and lack of social life with Nani. The two must adapt to the loss of their parents, and it is not a task for which either is entirely prepared. Secondly, in the case of Stitch, the lack of family is given as one of the most probable reasons for his anti-social behaviour. As Jumba states, Stitch has no "higher purpose", and he does not belong anywhere. Stitch reveals several times during the film that he desires to belong to something, first in his interest in the story of the Ugly Duckling, then with his efforts to join in on the fun at the beach as Nani, Lilo, and David play, and finally with his leaving Lilo in an effort to imitate the Ugly Duckling by acting lost in the woods. Lilo herself notices the loneliness of Stitch, and asks him what happened to his family, mentioning that she hears him cry at night. Lilo then states that she believe this is why he wrecks things.
With these two examples in consideration it is easy to determine on of the primary messages of this movie to be a need for family. The end of the film drives the fact home when Stitch identifies Lilo and Nani as his family, which he states as being "broken, but still good". This message applies not only to the family, but to the characters themselves, beginning the resolution wherein all of the characters, Jumba, Pleakley, David, and Cobra Bubbles included, are shown in short scenes or still photographs in very domestic settings and events. Happiness and contentment occurs with everyone being one family. "Ohana", the Hawaiian word which is mentioned as meaning "family" throughout the movie, actually translates more accurately to mean "extended family", which is the family organization "Lilo and Stitch" appears to treasure. Without the presence of the traditional family personalities of mother and father, Lilo, Stitch, and Nani form an extended family unit which includes not only themselves, but also welcomes all those others who are a part of their lives. In joining this "ohana" all of the displaced characters find belonging, which is the other major ideal of the film.

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