Film | Meet Me In St. Louis (1944)

This is another DVD I picked up a few years and have just gotten around to watching. I knew it was full of wonderful music and was going to be beautiful with his colorful wardrobes and sets, but I didn't expect to love it so much. I say that about almost every film, so don't mind me.

MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS (1944)

"A cast of favorites in the Charming . . .
Romantic . . . Tuneful Love Story
of the Early 1900s !"

THE PLAYERS:
Judy Garland as Esther Smith
Margaret O'Brien as "Tootie" Smith
Mary Astor as Mrs. Anna Smith
Lucille Bremer as Rose Smith
Tom Drake as John Truitt
Marjorie Main as Katie the maid
Leon Ames as Mr. Alonzo Smith

THE STORY:
Judy Garland stars as Esther Smith, who just can't ignore the boy next door (Tom Drake), in director Vincente Minnelli's musical masterpiece about the trials and tribulations of a tight-knit family living in St. Louis on the eve of the 1904 World's Fair. Memorable characters and charming songs, which include "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" and "The Trolley Song," make this one of the greatest American musicals ever lensed. [Netflix]

MY FAVORITE SCENE:
This entire film was delightful to watch, but my favorite scene came toward the end of the film. When Tootie gets upset about leaving St. Louis, she storms outside to destroy her snowmen. Big sis Esther comes to her aid and we are treated to one of the most memorable performances ever. When Judy sings "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas", you are captivated. From the beautiful framing of Garland to her beautiful vibrato, you cant help but to tear up.

TIDBITS & TRIVIA:

This film has been credited with kicking off the Golden Age of the MGM musical. It is considered of of the studio's signature films because of it's style and look. The success of this film started a wave of what are considered today as top rate musicals. Vincente Minnelli and Arthur Freed would follow Meet Me In St. Louis with such films as The Bandwagon (1953), Brigadoon (1954) and An American In Paris (1951).

At first Judy Garland was reluctant to play another teenage girl role, but I am sure her mind changed once she fell in love with director Vincente Minnelli. You can see the love that Minnelli had for Judy through the way he framed her in every one of her scenes. Never has a film captured her beauty more than this one.

OTHER THOUGHTS:
I am not sure what else needs to be said about this film. The beautiful colors, sets, costumes and of course the music make this a wonderful film. If you are a fan of Judy Garland, musicals, or just a fan of great cinema... make sure this is on your list of films to see.

OVERALL RATING:

Happy Halloween 2011

Well today is October 31st, and we all know what that means! It's Halloween! I know this holiday has many meanings, but to me it is a time to see fun costumes and watch scary movies. The spiritual side and what not doesn't interest me one bit.

So along with Betty Grable, Judy Garland, and Joan Crawford... Blame Mame wishes everyone a Happy Halloween!

Judy is frightened by the witches brew!

Joan loves the festivities!

Betty is surprised by the scary stories!

Fashion | Gowns By Kalloch

One thing that stands out most to me when I watch studio era films are the costume designs. There were many influential designers from this period, some more popular then others. Fashion artist such as Edith Head and Adrian are very well known, but after watching 1938's Holiday and Bringing Up Baby I discovered a designer I hadn't yet discovered. The name next to the gowns billing? Columbia Studio's Robert Kalloch.

Designs for Holiday & Bringing Up Baby

Robert Kalloch was born in 1893 in New York City. He got his start designing gowns for New York's high-profile socialites and dancers for Lucille Ltd. He got his break in Hollywood in the early 1930's when he was hired by Harry Cohn to help improve the low-budget reputation of Columbia Pictures. 

Designs for Mrs Miniver & His Girl Friday

Robert Kalloch was one of the biggest trendsetters in Hollywood during the 1930's and 1940's. Stars such as Fay Wray and Greer Garson were lucky enough to have their sophisticated wardrobes designed by Kollach. 

Irene Dunne and Robert Kollach with designs from The Awful Truth

Simply credited with 'Gowns by Kalloch', many memorable films of that period were touched by this leader of fashion. Films such as His Girl Friday (1940), For Me and My Gal (1942), Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939) and The Awful Truth (1937) are just a few of the iconic films he worked on. His designs can even be seen uncredited in 1934's It Happened One Night and Twentieth Century.

Wedding gown from It Happened One Night

 

Kalloch also gets credit for helping shape the style of Look Magazine's "Best Dressed Girl In Hollywood" of 1940, Rita Hayworth. He was the first to specially design a wardrobe for Rita as her fame was rising. He worked with Rita on such films as The Lone Wolf Spy Hunt (1939), Angels Over Broadway (1940), The Lady In Question (1940), You'll Never Get Rich (1941) and Only Angels Have Wings (1939). 

Designs for Angels Over Broadway, You'll Never Get Rich, & Lone Wolf Spy Hunt

As you can see Robert Kalloch stayed quite busy in his short time in Hollywood.

Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney in designs from Babes On Broadway

Film | Classic Films Around The World

This post is for The Great Movie Project's World In Film blogathon. The challenge of this blogathon was to highlight films made in each of the 7 continents. I decided (for obvious reasons) to do this blogathon with a classic film twist...

Actor | Kay Thompson

Even though I have only seen Kay Thompson in the 1957 film Funny Face, I have always been interested in learning more about this stylish lady with a grand voice. It wasn't until today as I watched the special feature on That's Entertainment about the people behind the camera, that I learned that Kay Thompson was so much more than an actress.

"I've discovered the secret of life. A lot of hard work, a lot of sense of humor, a lot of joy and a whole lot of tra la la."

Music | Classic Hollywood: Gleek'd

As I just revealed in my last post, the FOX TV series 'Glee' is one of my favorite things of all time. I decided to do a little post about some Classic Hollywood [the time frame is a little stretched, but oh well] songs/musical numbers that have been Gleek'd.

01. Happy Days Are Here Again/Get Happy

  

Original Performer: Judy Garland & Barbara Streisand
Gleeks: Lea Michele & Chris Colfer

Photos | On Set

Judy Garland & Fred Astaire performing 'We're A Couple Of Swells.'
From the 1948 film Easter Parade

Photography | George Hurrell

I love everything about Classic Hollywood, but one of the things I enjoy most is the portrait photography. From the dramatic lighting, to the exaggerated posing, to the perfectly designed faces... it is hard to pin point what makes these photos so fun to look at. Whenever I look at these type of photos, it makes me feel like I am in another time. Of all these photos, the photography of George Hurrell is some of my favorite. The way he used lighting to compose these gorgeous shots impresses me everytime I look at them.

HURRELL WITH DOROTHY JORDAN, CIRCA 1932