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A glowing Victorian veranda and four snow figures stand to the right of an open snowy garden beneath a blue paper sky, with distant houses along the horizon.

Winter, not Christmas · 1944

Meet Me in St. Louis

44/100Festive FactorWhy it scores 44 ↓
UK certificate Universal113 min
Romance · Musical

Not really a Christmas film, and here because its Christmas section is one of the great sequences in the form.

Rent or buy · Rakuten TV, Sky Store →
Plan this film night ↓Can the kids watch? ↓
Explore this film 11 sections

The CineClaus Christmas score

Festive Factor

Christmas in good measure.

Two paper elves arrange four snow figures around a miniature Victorian veranda, with warm lamps lighting the house model and craft materials on the workbench.

A little magic in the making.

Five ingredients make the Festive Factor.
Open an ingredient to find out more.

Christmas in the storyChristmas is only the occasion.10/30

What we ask: Take Christmas out. Does the plot survive? Worth up to 30 of the 100 points.

A world dressed for ChristmasVisibly Christmas for the final act.5/20

What we ask: How much of the running time is visibly Christmas? Worth up to 20 of the 100 points.

The little seasonal details5 of the 10 kinds of Christmas icon we count turn up on screen.8/15

What we ask: How many kinds of Christmas icon turn up on screen: trees, lights, snow, carols and the rest? Worth up to 15 of the 100 points.

A Christmas heartHow far the ending rests on goodwill, family and belief: substantially.15/20

What we ask: Does the ending depend on what Christmas means: goodwill, family, redemption, belief? Worth up to 20 of the 100 points.

A returning traditionA December regular (25,000+).6/15

What we ask: Is it actually watched at Christmas in the UK? Worth up to 15 of the 100 points.

91/100

Cosiness Rating Rating

How we score →
What do these scores mean?

Festive Factor measures how Christmassy a film is. Five ingredients add up to 100: story (30), setting (20), seasonal details (15), emotional heart (20) and returning tradition (15).

Cosiness is a separate score for warmth of tone, sense of safety, visual comfort, a reassuring ending and how easily you can settle into it.

How the Festive Factor works →
Your next film night

Where to watch

United KingdomChecked

Rakuten TV

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Meet Me in St. Louis · Rental and purchase cost extra, separately from membership.

Streaming changes constantly and we cannot promise it is still right - check the service before you settle in. Streaming availability information provided by Streaming Availability API by Movie of the Night (opens in a new tab). Sky and Rakuten TV data by JustWatch.

The story

About Meet Me in St. Louis

A well-off St Louis family spends the year leading up to the 1904 World's Fair falling in and out of love, squabbling and dreading the father's plan to move everyone to New York. It is built as four seasonal panels rather than one continuous story, and the winter panel contains its Christmas material. Christmas is a late, decisive movement in it rather than the whole piece.

The CineClaus verdict

Not really a Christmas film, and here because its Christmas section is one of the great sequences in the form.

A year in a family's life told as four seasonal panels, and the winter one carries a song that has never stopped being sad. The rest is warm, unhurried and largely plotless in the best way.

Come for the December movement and stay because the whole thing is better company than most things made since.

The family desk

Can the kids watch?

U

Our take: fine for all ages, though younger children will find the pace slow. One scene of real upset near the end.

Content advice & accessibility
Our age guidance
Editorial, separate from the official U certificate, and never looser than it.
A first look

Watch the trailer

Official trailer from Warner Bros. Classics.

A burgundy Victorian house glows behind four snow figures, with a cream veranda, snow-covered trees and lamps lining the surrounding winter garden.

Trailer

Meet Me in St. Louis

Watch on YouTube (opens in a new tab)Nothing from YouTube loads until you press play.
The people behind the film

Cast and crew

The faces in front of the camera, and the people who brought the story to life.

Main cast

In billing order
Black and white portrait of a short-haired woman resting her chin on one hand and looking upward against a striped curtain.Judy Garlandas Esther Smith
Black and white photograph of a young girl smiling, sitting on a suitcase outdoors in a checked coat with a large doll on her lap.Margaret O'Brienas 'Tootie' Smith
Black and white studio photograph of a dark-haired woman in a white fur jacket and floral gown, standing beside a wire chair in a spotlight.Mary Astoras Anna Smith
Black and white studio portrait of a smiling young woman with wavy shoulder-length hair, wearing a pale high-necked top.Lucille Bremeras Rose Smith
Black and white studio portrait of a middle-aged man with slicked-back hair and a moustache, wearing a dark jacket and bow tie and looking at the camera.Leon Amesas Alonzo Smith
Black and white publicity portrait of a man in a dark jacket and tie, standing against a brick wall with a serious, sideways look.Tom Drakeas John Truett
Black and white studio portrait of an older woman with short wavy hair, leaning on the back of a striped chair with her hands clasped.Marjorie Mainas Katie
Sepia studio portrait of a young man in round wire glasses, a dark jacket and a striped tie, looking to one side.Harry Davenportas Grandpa

Behind the camera

Directed by
Vincente Minnelli
Original score
Georgie Stoll
Writing & production credits
Writers
Fred F. Finklehoffe
Irving Brecher
Producer
Arthur Freed
Photo credits

Portraits via Wikimedia Commons, each under its own licence, approved for this page by a person. Sources and full photographer credits:

Judy Garland · Scott, Globe [1] · Source image (opens in a new tab) · Public domain.

Margaret O'Brien · Los Angeles Times · Source image (opens in a new tab) · CC BY 4.0 (opens in a new tab).

Mary Astor · Whitey Schafer · Source image (opens in a new tab) · Public domain.

Lucille Bremer · Unknown author Unknown author · Source image (opens in a new tab) · Public domain.

Leon Ames · Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer · Source image (opens in a new tab) · Public domain.

Tom Drake · Studio Publicity · Source image (opens in a new tab) · Public domain.

Marjorie Main · Unknown author Unknown author · Source image (opens in a new tab) · Public domain.

Harry Davenport · Harrison & Coover, Central Music Hall, Chicago · Source image (opens in a new tab) · Public domain.

Vincente Minnelli · Earl Ostroff · Source image (opens in a new tab) · Public domain.

Keep the Christmas feeling

Music & soundtrack

That tune you recognised. That score you loved. Take a little of the film into the rest of your Christmas.

Affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, Cine Claus earns from qualifying purchases. Buying through a link helps pay for the site - it never changes a score.

Every track on the soundtrack album, in album order.

Behind the music. Georgie Stoll composed the score.

About this music list

These are the songs and soundtrack we hold for the film, not a complete cue sheet, and they give no scene timings. Album track lists and durations come from MusicBrainz. Spotify and Apple Music links open the matched recordings; links marked Search open a search on that service.

Wikidata ↗ (opens in a new tab) MusicBrainz ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Step into the story

Filming locations

The real places behind Meet Me in St. Louis. Choose one to explore.

Find it on the mapSony Pictures Studios (former MGM studio lot), Culver City

© OpenStreetMap contributors (opens in a new tab)

Open larger map ↗ (OpenStreetMap, opens in a new tab)

Map shows the selected place. Drag to explore; use + and − to zoom.

Photo credits & location sources

These are photographs of the places, not film stills. Dates vary; photographs do not show current conditions or guarantee access.

Sony Pictures Studios (former MGM studio lot), Culver City · Coolcaesar · Source image (opens in a new tab) · CC BY-SA 4.0 (opens in a new tab) · thecinemaholic.com (opens in a new tab)

Map pins mark the place, not a camera position or a route. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), including any pin positions read from OpenStreetMap.

A little more Meet Me in St. Louis

Film facts &
behind the scenes

For the fans who stay after the credits.

On set

Garland was talked into one more teenager

Judy Garland was 21 and did not want to play a teenage girl again. Vincente Minnelli persuaded her, the two fell for each other on this film, and she later counted Esther among her favourite parts.

Read the story

Source: classicmoviehub.com ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Movie magic

A period street built from scratch, with catalogue costumes

Minnelli chased period accuracy. The author of the original stories gave detailed notes on the house's decor, and the costume designer worked from mail-order catalogues of the day.

Read the story

Source: classicmoviehub.com ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Music & sound

The darker line Garland refused to sing

The Christmas ballad first had a bleaker lyric. Garland would not sing it to Margaret O'Brien's Tootie, and the studio dropped the line. The song went on to rank 72nd on the AFI list of greatest film songs.

Read the story

Its writer later reworked it into a gospel version with changed wording for other singers.

Source: classicmoviehub.com ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Music & sound

The Trolley Song in a single take

A caption beside a turn-of-the-century trolley photo in a St. Louis history book inspired the number. Garland recorded it in one take, and the AFI later placed it 26th among film songs.

Read the story

Source: classicmoviehub.com ↗ (opens in a new tab)

And at a glance

The Christmas in it
Snow on screen. Set on 24 December. Carols and songs heard: Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas. Christmas is one season among four here; the festive stretch is the winter section near the end.
Releases and certificates
: Premiere (US). US release date as held by Wikidata.
Awards
Nominated: Academy Awards 1945, Best Writing, Screenplay (Irving Brecher).
Nominated: Academy Awards 1945, Best Cinematography, Color.
Nominated: Academy Awards 1945, Best Scoring of a Musical Picture (Georgie Stoll).
Nominated: Academy Awards 1945, Best Original Song.
Sources & a note on these facts

Each production story is linked to its source, in our own words. Ending details stay behind a spoiler reveal.

Good to know

Questions about Meet Me in St. Louis

Who directed Meet Me in St. Louis?

Vincente Minnelli directed it, with Arthur Freed producing. Judy Garland, Margaret O'Brien and Mary Astor lead the cast.

When was Meet Me in St. Louis first released?

Its premiere was on 22 November 1944 in the United States.

Where was Meet Me in St. Louis filmed?

Almost none of it was shot in the real city. The family street was built on the former MGM studio lot in Culver City, with interiors on soundstages.

Who composed the music for Meet Me in St. Louis?

Georgie Stoll is credited with the score. A soundtrack album with the same title as the film is listed on MusicBrainz.

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