For Me and My Gal (1942)

An unusually dramatic Busby Berkeley musical, FOR ME AND MY GAL chronicles the love and struggles of vaudeville team Harry Palmer (Gene Kelly, in his film debut) and Jo Hayden (a stunning Judy Garland) as they pursue their big dream of playing New York's prestigious Palace Theater. Just as that dream is about to finally come true, World War I breaks out and Harry is called into service. When he maims himself to avoid the draft, Jo can't forgive his cowardice, and Harry must search his soul for a way to redeem himself in the eyes of his country, and the woman who taught him to love it.

The score is filled with old favorites from World War I, including "Beautiful Doll," "You Were a Tulip," "Over There," "Long, Long Trail," and "Oui, Oui, Marie," but it's Kelly and Garland's sublime rendition of the title tune that lingers. It became a best-selling record at the time, and the movie was also a major hit. With its panoramic scope of war, seduction, betrayal, and redemption, FOR ME AND MY GAL is an American musical of rare emotion and power.