REVIEW: “Gabby’s Dollhouse: The Movie” (2025)

(Source: IMDb) 

In the growing plethora of TV shows that DreamWorks has created for Netflix, one of their most popular is centered around a young girl who magically transports into a dollhouse and interacts with the imaginative characters who live there. Echoing shows like Blue’s Clues and Dora the Explorer, Gabby’s Dollhouse has become an interactive experience for children for eight seasons. In 2025, the show made the leap to the big screen, becoming DreamWorks’ first live-action/animated hybrid (second if you count the live-action How to Train Your Dragon, released earlier that summer). 

Let me just say, right off the bat, that this is not the kind of movie I would normally write about, let alone watch. For one thing, I’m not the target demographic. For another, the same: this is strictly for kids. That is, unless you want to see SNL veteran Kristen Wiig hamming it up as a fashion-obsessed villainess, or singing sensation Gloria Estefan as Gabby’s endearing grandmother. However, because I've been spending the last several months revisiting and doing retrospectives on the history and filmography of DreamWorks Animation, this movie is part of that canon. Hence, this review. Plus, it is rare for a studio release to get a G-rating these days (despite being pigeonholed as a child-focused label, instead of the “general audience” stamp it used to be). 

The titular heroine (Laila Lockhart Kraner has played this role since she was 12 years old) travels to the city of Cat Francisco (that’s right) to spend the week with her Grandma Gigi. Then, her dollhouse gets lost, and is found and stolen by a fashion- and cat-obsessed businesswoman. The plot soon becomes a rescue mission, filled with a much bigger scope (from Gabby’s bedroom to the big city), colorful animation, creative costume changes, fourth wall narration/interaction, and visual cat motifs throughout, giving kids in the audience some opportunities to sing along. Standout sequences include a charming number in a fish tank, which gives the live-action Little Mermaid a run for its money, and a lively aerial chase sequence involving woodland creatures, who move at a stylized frame rate à la Spider-Verse and Puss in Boots). 

The movie is a little longer than it needs to be. For one thing, it features a subplot involving Girl Scouts, which is a little too much. It also has a few subtle adult references, from song choices on the soundtrack, to scenes of yoga/meditation and characters getting sugar rushes. A central new character, stuffed animal Chumsley (voiced by Jason Mantzoukas), has trust issues and believes his days of playtime are over. 

As it turns out, Gabby’s Dollhouse isn’t entirely kid-focused. Recalling themes in Pixar’s Toy Story series, Gabby does get surprisingly resonant and sweet. Its message about remembering what it means to be a child (especially play) and fearing what happens when you become an adult is key. This is reflective in our three main human characters (Gabby, Vera, and Gigi), each representing different generations and experiences. The adult Vera (who sells glittered kitty litter, of all things) believes that, when you become an adult, there’s no more room for fun. Thus, another takeaway is not giving up on people, friendships, and/or family, no matter how old they get. And that’s a worthwhile lesson that any age can connect with.