Meet Me in St. Louis
- Judy Garland: Esther Smith
- Margaret O'Brien: Tootie Smith
- Mary Astor: Mrs. Anna Smith
- Lucille Bremer: Rose Smith
- Leon Ames: Mr. Alonzo Smith
- Tom Drake: John Truett
- Marjorie Main: housemaid Katie
- Harry Davenport: grandfather
- June Lockhart: Lucille Ballard
Meet Me in St. Louis is an American film musical of the film studio MGM in 1944, which is also under the titles Me in St. Louis, The great love next door or the foolish virgins is known in German-speaking countries.
Action
The film is set to the seasons summer, autumn, winter and spring 1903/1904 in St. Louis, where the Smith family with five children survived. The two oldest daughters Rose and Esther are both in love. Rose is waiting for news of their loved ones who went to New York and Esther has fallen in love in the new neighbor John Truett. However, the favorite of the family is the youngest daughter Tootie, which is equipped for her five years with a lot of imagination and dissolved into tears on Halloween comes home. She claims the neighbor John Truett 've beaten them. Esther then runs to her lover and avenge her little sister. When she comes back, she has to learn that Tootie has fibbed to hide stupidity, it has committed at night. Esther terribly ashamed and apologizes to John Truett. Thus, the two grow closer. When Father Smith, a little successful lawyer, unexpectedly announced that he had risen in the office, and the family had to move to New York, he met with widespread rejection of the family. Only on the long-awaited ball on Christmas Eve to clarify the love affairs of the two older sisters, and at night the father decides to stay with his family in St. Louis. The happy ending will take place at the World Exposition in St. Louis in 1904.
Background
The film is based on short stories that had Sally Benson published weekly in New York Magazine The New Yorker and enjoyed great popularity. The stories are full of local patriotism; written by an author who was from the province to the metropolis and wanted to show the snooty urbanites how wonderful it is there. The story is actually told briefly. The family of Mr. Smith complains about the provincialism of her hometown - but when he decides to bring her to New York, no one wants to leave the home town.
Judy Garland was on the set of already 22 years old, but had to once again play a teenager. She wanted to take the role only after she met the director Vincente Minnelli, who convinced. After the shooting, they became a couple and married.
To the great success of the film, the songs of the film contributed: the title song Meet Me in St. Louis ( which is sung by the whole family and comes from Kerry Mills and Andrew B. Sterling), Trolley Song, The Boy Next Door or Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas classics are still among the great age of MGM musicals and later found their way also into the concert repertoire of Judy Garland.
Reviews
- " A very cozy full, entertaining musical with excellent choreography, good songs and prominent guests. " - " Encyclopedia of the international film " (CD -ROM edition ), Systhema, Munich 1997
Awards
The film received four Academy Award nominations in the categories " Best Screenplay ", " Best Cinematography ", " Best Music " and "Best Song" ( Trolley Song). Margaret O'Brien won the Juvenile Award Oscar for the former child actor. In 1994 the film was added to the National Film Registry.
DVD Release
- Meet Me in St. Louis. Warner Home Video 2004