Publication Date: 09-26-2025

Gabby’s Dollhouse: The Movie (2025) review

Dir. Ryan Crego

By: Steve Pulaski

Rating: ★★

“A pinch on my left, pinch, pinch on my right,” the 12-year-old (?) Gabby of Gabby’s Dollhouse: The Movie sings as she tugs on the cat ears of her headband when she wants to turn into her diminutive, animated likeness. She follows that up with belting, “Grab Pandy’s hand, and hold on tight,” clenching the paw of her stuffed animal tightly before glittery, rainbow fairy dust swirls around her and turns her from a human being into a puffy, pint-sized animated vessel. She can look her many kitties (known as “Gabby Cats”) in the eye, and aid them on their adventures inside her pink-and-blue dollhouse.

I know what you’re thinking, dear reader. Why did I bother seeing Gabby’s Dollhouse: The Movie in theaters? Faithful readers will know I’m a kid at heart. I find myself forever curious about film adaptations of TV shows because desperately few make it to theaters. My generation was spoiled with the likes of Hey Arnold!: The Movie, The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie, and three Rugrats movies, including a crossover, just to name a few. These days, getting parents to take their children to a theater is a costly chore, especially in the era of streaming convenience. Even if I might not be the target audience for Gabby’s Dollhouse: The Movie, and ultimately wasn’t enthralled by much of what I witnessed, I can and will appreciate (and support) its existence.

Gabby’s Dollhouse is essentially a contemporary iteration of Blue’s Clues, insofar that it was also created by Traci Paige Johnson and Jennifer Twomey, both of whom worked on the classic children’s program. The show revolves around a tween girl named Gabby (played by Laila Lockhart Kraner) and her eponoymous cats as they embark on adventures inside their dollhouse. In order for the fun to start, or, for Gabby to shrink down to a size where she’d fit in said dollhouse, she has to sing the aforementioned song.

The show has been successful enough to prompt 11 seasons and 76 episodes on Netflix. The movie remains true to the spirit of the show, converging live-action and animation, as Gabby cherishes the dollhouse made by her grandmother, Gigi (Gloria Estefan), and the miniature cats that live inside it. Shortly after a quick origins story, Gabby and Gigi set off on a road trip to “Cat Francisco,” a city complete with a bright pink Golden Gate Bridge. En route to the kitty metropolis, her dollhouse is sent careening down the steep hills of the city, to the tune of Bruno Mars and Rosé’s annoyingly infectious “APT.” (one of many lively, if gratuitous, needle-drops), somehow dodging traffic and avoiding serious damage. This is a spirited sequence, the kind that makes kids, and adults like myself, who have a hard time keeping their legs from jittering when they’re excited, bounce with excitement.

Unfortunately, however, that fun sequence means that Gabby loses possession of her precious dollhouse, which is a disappointing plot for a feature film. Imagine if Pee-wee’s Big Adventure revolved around Pee-wee fighting to get his playhouse back from foreclosure.

Long story short, Gabby’s dollhouse is acquired by Vera (a scenery-chewing Kristen Wiig), who could serve as the pioneer for the term “cat lady.” The entrepreneur behind “Pretty Glitter Kitty Litter,” Vera is also a passionate collector, but doesn’t understand the value of toys comes from playing with them as opposed to letting them collect dust on shelves. This info comes from Chumsley (voiced by Jason Mantzoukas), a stuffed animal who despises Vera because he was neglected the older she got.

One of the most disappointing elements of Gabby’s Dollhouse: The Movie is despite the abundance of adorable cats — with such cutesy, saccharine names as “Kitty Fridge,” “Twiggy,” and my personal favorite, “Baby Box” — is they have precious little screentime relative to Vera, Chumsley, or Gabby, who hastily tries to get them, and her dollhouse, back in her possession. A movie like this is a rarity: one that doesn’t portray cats as cunning villains or make them out to be cold, unfeeling scourges that will never be as popular as their canine counterparts. Here’s a movie that allows them to be silly, loving, and compatible with humans.

Now, if only the script were up to par with the candy-colored visuals and sugar rush pacing. The plot is overly chaotic, for it’s competing with Gen Alpha attention spans, and the adequate morals are likely to get drowned out by songs like “Sunroof.” In the spirit of Dora, Gabby occasionally breaks the fourth wall to talk to the audience. At one point, she instructs viewers to grab ahold of the hand of the person sitting next to them so they can sing “The Pinch Pinch Song.” I was in a theater by myself, and for a number of reasons, was grateful. If Steve opts for a matinee showing of Gabby’s Dollhouse: The Movie, and no one in the auditorium with him to see the film, did he even see it? By this time next week, I’ll probably forget I did too.

Starring: Laila Lockhart Kraner, Gloria Estefan, and Kristen Wiig. Voiced by: Logan Bailey, Jason Mantzoukas, Fortune Feimster, Thomas Lennon, Kyle Mooney, Matty Matheson, Donovan Patton, and Tara Strong. Directed by: Ryan Crego.