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Meet Me in St. Louis

  • 19441944
  • PassedPassed
  • 1h 53m
IMDb RATING
7.5/10
24K
YOUR RATING
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
  • IMDbPro
Judy Garland, Tom Drake, and Margaret O'Brien in Meet Me in St. Louis (1944)
In the year before the 1904 St Louis World's Fair, the four Smith daughters learn lessons of life and love, even as they prepare for a reluctant move to New York.
Play trailer1:41
2 Videos
99+ Photos
  • Comedy
  • Drama
  • Family
Young love and childish fears highlight a year in the life of a turn-of-the-century family.Young love and childish fears highlight a year in the life of a turn-of-the-century family.Young love and childish fears highlight a year in the life of a turn-of-the-century family.
IMDb RATING
7.5/10
24K
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Vincente Minnelli
  • Writers
    • Irving Brecher(screen play)
    • Fred F. Finklehoffe(screen play)
    • Sally Benson(based on the novel by)
  • Stars
    • Judy Garland
    • Margaret O'Brien
    • Mary Astor
Top credits
  • Director
    • Vincente Minnelli
  • Writers
    • Irving Brecher(screen play)
    • Fred F. Finklehoffe(screen play)
    • Sally Benson(based on the novel by)
  • Stars
    • Judy Garland
    • Margaret O'Brien
    • Mary Astor
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 193User reviews
    • 106Critic reviews
    • 94Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Nominated for 4 Oscars
      • 7 wins & 5 nominations total

    Videos2

    U.S. Version
    Trailer 1:41
    U.S. Version
    Dates in Movie & TV History: Christmas Eve
    Video 2:08
    Dates in Movie & TV History: Christmas Eve

    Photos138

    Margaret O'Brien and Chill Wills in Meet Me in St. Louis (1944)
    Judy Garland in Meet Me in St. Louis (1944)
    Judy Garland and Tom Drake in Meet Me in St. Louis (1944)
    Judy Garland in Meet Me in St. Louis (1944)
    Judy Garland and Tom Drake in Meet Me in St. Louis (1944)
    Judy Garland in Meet Me in St. Louis (1944)
    Judy Garland in Meet Me in St. Louis (1944)
    Tom Drake, Judy Garland Meet Me In St. Louis (1944) 0037059 MGM
    "Meet Me in St. Louis" Judy Garland 1944 MGM
    Meet Me in St. Louis (1944)
    Judy Garland in Meet Me in St. Louis (1944)
    Judy Garland, Tom Drake, and Margaret O'Brien in Meet Me in St. Louis (1944)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Judy Garland
    Judy Garland
    • Esther Smithas Esther Smith
    Margaret O'Brien
    Margaret O'Brien
    • 'Tootie' Smithas 'Tootie' Smith
    Mary Astor
    Mary Astor
    • Mrs. Anna Smithas Mrs. Anna Smith
    Lucille Bremer
    Lucille Bremer
    • Rose Smithas Rose Smith
    Leon Ames
    Leon Ames
    • Mr. Alonzo Smithas Mr. Alonzo Smith
    Tom Drake
    Tom Drake
    • John Truettas John Truett
    Marjorie Main
    Marjorie Main
    • Katie (Maid)as Katie (Maid)
    Harry Davenport
    Harry Davenport
    • Grandpaas Grandpa
    June Lockhart
    June Lockhart
    • Lucille Ballardas Lucille Ballard
    Henry H. Daniels Jr.
    Henry H. Daniels Jr.
    • Lon Smith Jr.as Lon Smith Jr.
    Joan Carroll
    Joan Carroll
    • Agnes Smithas Agnes Smith
    Hugh Marlowe
    Hugh Marlowe
    • Col. Darlyas Col. Darly
    Robert Sully
    Robert Sully
    • Warren Sheffieldas Warren Sheffield
    Chill Wills
    Chill Wills
    • Mr. Neelyas Mr. Neely
    Sidney Barnes
    • Hugo Borvisas Hugo Borvis
    • (uncredited)
    Judi Blacque
    • Girl on Trolleyas Girl on Trolley
    • (uncredited)
    Victor Cox
    • A Driveras A Driver
    • (uncredited)
    Donald Curtis
    Donald Curtis
    • Dr. Girardas Dr. Girard
    • (uncredited)
    • Director
      • Vincente Minnelli
    • Writers
      • Irving Brecher(screen play)
      • Fred F. Finklehoffe(screen play)
      • Sally Benson(based on the novel by)
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
    • All cast & crew

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      This film was a box-office smash, grossing more money than any prior MGM release in 20 years with the exception of David O. Selznick's Gone with the Wind (1939).
    • Goofs
      It is often incorrectly claimed that an off screen male voice calls out "Hiya, Judy" (referring to actress Judy Garland instead of her character, Esther). The voice actually says "Hiya, Johnny". This refers to Tom Drake's character, John Truett, who has been trying to catch the trolley and apparently just made it. As soon as the line is delivered, Esther looks expectantly screen right, but John is not seen until the end of the trolley song sequence.
    • Quotes

      [about her doll]

      'Tootie' Smith: Poor Margeretha, I've never seen her look so pale.

      Mr. Neely: The sun oughta do her some good.

      'Tootie' Smith: I suspect she won't live through the night, she has four fatal diseases.

      Mr. Neely: And it only takes one.

      'Tootie' Smith: But she's going to have a beautiful funeral, in a cigar box my Papa gave me, all wrapped up in silver paper.

      Mr. Neely: That's the way to go, if you have to go.

      'Tootie' Smith: Oh, she has to go.

    • Alternate versions
      Judy Garland recorded a Rodgers and Hammerstein song called "Boys and Girls Like You and Me" for the soundtrack. A scene was filmed with Garland singing the song to Tom Drake after "The Trolley Song" sequence, but the scene was cut after the first preview. The footage no longer remains, but the recording does.
    • Connections
      Edited into Hollywood: The Dream Factory (1972)
    • Soundtracks
      The Trolley Song
      Written by Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane

      Sung by Judy Garland (uncredited) and chorus

    User reviews193

    Review
    Top review
    8/10
    Minnelli Directs Garland In MGM Classic
    "The day was bright, The air was sweet, The smell of honeysuckle almost knocked you off your feet ..." This is unashamed nostalgia for an idealised America, dating back to an age of innocence before the two World Wars.

    It is 1903, and the city of St. Louis is ablaze with excitement as it prepares to host the World's Fair. Here in the geographic heart of the USA, the very pleasant Smith family lives in a very pleasant suburb of the very pleasant St. Louis. We watch the Smiths through the seasons and into Spring 1904 as they fall in love, dress up for Hallowe'en, bottle their home-made ketchup and .... well, ride the trolley.

    This is a world of tranquillity where nothing can threaten the homely complacency of Middle America. The evening meal is always a wholesome family gathering, the month of July is always sunny, big brothers are always handsome Princeton freshmen and the iceman's mare knows the neighbourhood so well that she stops at each home on her round without needing to be told. The only shadow which falls across the Smiths' domestic bliss comes when Alonzo, the paterfamilias, proposes to move the household to New York. However, Alonzo soon realises what a terrible mistake it would be to tear his wife and daughters away from their beloved MidWest: he relents, and family harmony is restored.

    This heartwarming, exuberant musical is one of the very best ever made, and MGM knew exactly what it was doing in terms of box office success. The film was calculated to cash in on the zeitgeist of 1944, the year in which vast American armies were sent across to Europe and the war in the Pacific turned decisively in America's favour. Millions of young American men found themselves far from home in what was certain to be the last Christmas of the War, and millions of families back home missed them terribly: " Some day soon we all will be together, If the fates allow. Until then, we'll have to muddle through somehow ..."

    In this idealised America, everyone is prosperous, everyone conducts himself like a good citizen should, old folks are cheerful, healthy and alert, domestic servants feign grumpiness but actually adore their masters, and teenage girls are flirtatious but impeccably proper. There are strong American folk-resonances in the homespun wisdom of the family elders, the strong, straight young adults and the 'down home' hearthside gatherings and dances. It could be argued that the film invokes an America that has never in fact existed. This maybe so, but the Perfect America which we experience here exerts an emotional pull far stronger than any real place could command.

    Vincente Minnelli directed the movie with panache. There are many subtle but sure touches - for example, two short scenes which establish the proposition that the family's happiness is inextricably linked to St. Louis. Alonzo announces the move to New York, and with clever choreography Minnelli turns him into a pariah in his own living-room. Esther and Tootie gaze at the snowmen which they will have to abandon in the yard, and we know without any dialogue to help us that the eastward migration isn't going to happen. With similar cinematic economy, Minnelli shows us the happy commotion around the Christmas tree without allowing it to distract our attention from Alonzo and Anna, whose wordless reconciliation sets the seal on the plot. This is directing of rare skill.

    In films of the 1960's and 70's a stock device was used: a sepia-tinted photograph would 'come to life' with colour and motion, to show that the scene was laid in the past. Minnelli employs the trick elegantly in this film, and I am not aware of any example which pre-dates this one.

    This is a 'formula' movie, but its ingredients are so fine and they are combined with such marvellous skill that the whole eclipses the parts. Among the elements which contribute to the project's success are the songs - and the film contains three classics: "The Trolley Song", "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas" and (of course) "Meet Me In St. Louis".

    Judy Garland was 22 years old when she made this film (though she easily passes for a 17-year-old) and it was this movie which cemented her relationship with Minnelli. They married one year later and Liza was born in March 1946.

    Predictably enough, the film has a happy ending. The teenage girls Esther and Rose are paired off, and the Smiths get to visit the World's Fair as one big happy family. As they look for the restaurant (once again, a meal signifies domestic harmony) they are distracted by the lighting-up of the city, a filmic metaphor for the approaching end of World War Two. The sisters are filled with awe at America's technological ascendancy, and that such miracles can be achieved by such folksy, simple people - "Right here where we live: right here in St. Louis!"
    helpful•64
    8
    • stryker-5
    • Dec 18, 1998

    FAQ6

    • Is Judy Garland wearing a wig or is her hair real?
    • What is 'Meet Me in St Louis' about?
    • Is 'Meet Me in St. Louis' based on a book?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • January 1945 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Official site
      • Official Site
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Heimweh nach St. Louis
    • Filming locations
      • La Grande Station, Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA
    • Production company
      • Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $1,700,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $415,008
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $225,684
      • Dec 8, 2019
    • Gross worldwide
      • $498,118
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 53 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.37 : 1

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