Meet Me in St.Louis (1944)

Meet Me in St. Louis was released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1944, starring Judy Garland and Margaret O'Brien. The film was directed by Vincente Minnelli, who had just recently started out as a director at MGM. Before St. Louis, he had been famous for directing the all-black musical, Cabin in the Sky, starring Lena Horne. Meet Me in St. Louis is about a year in the life of a turn-of-the-century family. The story is also set on the brink of the 1904 World's Fair. The Smith family has four daughters including Esther and Tootie. Esther has fallen in love with next door neighbor, John Truett, however, he barely notices her...at first. Tootie, on the other hand, decides to prove herself as a daredevil with the neighborhood kids. At Halloween, Tootie proves herself when she goes to the front door of Mr. Braukoff's house and blows flour in his face. Towards the end of the film, Mr. Smith informs the family that he has been transferred to a nicer job in New York City. Ultimately, the family has to leave St. Louis and the World's Fair. At this point, Esther and John have fallen in love and decide to get married. The movie ends with Mr. Smith announcing to the family that they are staying in St. Louis. Months later, the family attends the World's Fair. I absolutely love this film and it is by far, my favorite Christmas movie. The story warms your heart. One of the film's iconic moments is when Garland sings "Have Yourself a Merry Christmas". Everytime I watch it, I'm in total awe of Garland's performance. She gives it her all and when she winds up "Tootie's" jack-in-the-box, you fall under her spell and become completely enamored. When she made this, Judy Garland was on the verge of transitioning from "girl next door" roles to mature, adult-driven films. She and director, Vincente Minnelli married after the film wrapped and later had a daughter, Liza. St. Louis solidified Minnelli's career as an A-list director; he would go on to make such classics as An American in Paris and Gigi. For anyone in the mood for a family movie, why don't you come on and Meet Me in St. Louis...

See You at the Movies!

--Screen Siren 23