Film of the Week: Meet Me in St. Louis, 1944

At first, the executives at MGM weren’t sold on director Vincent Minelli’s idea for a film about an upper-middle class Missouri family set in 1904. When asked what happens in the film, Minelli responded that they’re a happy family faced with the prospect of having to move to New York City. The execs wanted more. “What happens then?” “Nothing.” Minelli responded.


Despite the studio’s doubts, the film went on to be one of the biggest successes of 1944 and remains one of the most beloved films in cinematic history. This romantic musical is marked with the most cheerful of highs and the most heart-wrenching lows.

With a score by Roger Edens, the film starred  Judy Garland, Margaret O'Brien, Mary Astor, Lucille Bremer, Tom Drake, Leon Ames, Marjorie Main, June Lockhart, and Joan Carroll as members of a loving family, living an absolutely normal life in St. Louis the year before the 1904 World’s Fair. The film follows them through the year, cleverly chronicling their trials and tribulations.

Meet Me in St. Louis is significant in many ways. This film introduced us to classic songs such as, “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas,” “The Boy Next Door” and the immortal “Trolley Song”…clang, clang, clang.

This is also the film which introduced Vincent Minelli to Judy Garland, leading to their marriage and, in time, the birth of Liza Minelli. Though she was resistant at first to star in the film—hoping to shed her good-girl image, the decision to participate certainly served Miss Garland well.

Aside from the music and solid acting, one of the most outstanding elements of this film is the beautiful sets. The Second Empire home is doubtlessly one of the most attractive sets in film history, and the interiors are historically spot-on.

Often considered a Christmas film, Meet Me in St. Louis is a picture for all seasons, and sure to offer you a very enjoyable time.