 | |
| Laurie Strode | |
| Aliases: | Laurie Strode Boo |
| Continuity: | Halloween remake series |
| Notability: | Main character |
| Type: | Student |
| Gender: | Female |
| Race: | Human |
| Location: | Haddonfield, Warren County, Illinois |
| Relatives: | Deborah Myers [1] Michael Myers [2] Judith Myers [3] Mason Strode [4] Cynthia Strode [5] |
| Status: | Deceased |
| Born: | 1990 [6] |
| Died: | 2009 [7] |
| First: | Halloween (2007) |
| Final: | Halloween II (2009) |
| Actor: | Scout Taylor-Compton Sydnie Pitzer Myla Pitzer Lela Altman |
Angel Myers, aka Laurie Strode, is a fictional high school student featured in the Halloween film series. She is part of the continuity of the remake series and was played by actress Scout Taylor-Compton. She was introduced in Halloween in 2007 and also appeared in the film's 2009 sequel, Halloween II. The character is based on the original Laurie Strode who was introduced in the 1978 movie Halloween and was played by actress Jamie Lee Curtis.
Biography[]
Laurie Strode was born Angel Myers, the daughter of Deborah Myers and an unidentified father. Her father passed away shortly after she was born. When Laurie was less than a year-old, her ten-year-old brother Michael suffered a psychotic break and murdered his older sister Judith, her boyfriend Steve Haley, and his mother's boyfriend Ronnie White. Despite this rampage, Michael felt nothing but love for his baby sister (who he affectionately referred to as "Boo"). His mother came home from work that evening and found Michael sitting on the steps outside their house cradling Boo in his arms. He was admitted to Smith's Grove Sanitarium in Warren County where, a year later, he murdered a nurse named Wynn. This additional murder proved too much for Deborah Myers and she took her own life with a handgun. An anonymous person heard the gunshot and called 911. Sheriff Lee Brackett responded to the call and discovered Deborah's body. He also found baby Laurie in her crib nearby. Fearful that the child might grow up bearing the stigma of the Myers name, he omitted her from his report, drove the infant to another town and dropped it off at a hospital. Three months later, the baby was adopted by a realtor from Haddonfield named Mason Strode, who just happened to have been a friend of Sheriff Brackett's. Brackett couldn't believe that the child he had sought to rescue was now living under a new name, Laurie Strode, just down the street from the place where he first found her. Laurie grew up in a loving family, completely ignorant of her true family's tragic history.
Babysitters[]
Seventeen years later, Laurie was at school with her friends Annie Brackett and Lynda van der Klok. Laurie had already arranged to babysit a boy named Tommy Doyle for Halloween, but Annie had convinced her to take care of her own charge, Lindsey Wallace, so that Annie could spend time with her boyfriend Paul. While walking home from school, the three girls spied an ominous shape staring at them from across the street. Annie and Lynda made some brazen comments towards the stranger, but Laurie was off-put by his appearance. Little did she realize that the masked man was actually her brother Michael who had only just returned to Haddonfield.
That evening, Annie picked Laurie up from her home and dropped her off at Tommy Doyle's house. Tommy was an excitable young boy who regaled Laurie with stories of the Mexican Wolf Man and the Boogey Man. As time passed, Annie stopped by to drop off Lindsey. The two girls talked and Annie impressed upon Laurie the importance of getting a boyfriend. She told her that she could set her up with a boy named Ben Tramer, but Laurie was resistant to the idea, claiming that she had heard that Tramer was retarded.
Michael attacks[]
As the evening wore on, Laurie decided to walk Lindsey back to her house. When she arrived, she found that Paul was dead and Annie was on the floor screaming and covered in blood. Laurie screamed and ordered Lindsey to run back to Tommy's house to call 911. Michael Myers stepped out of the shadows and attacked her. Michael grabbed Laurie and began tossing her about. She picked up a chair and threw it through a pair of French doors. She climbed out into the yard, but injured her ankle in the process. She shambled back to the Doyle house screaming for Tommy to let her in. Once inside, Laurie locked the door behind her, but Michael smashed his way through. Laurie and the children ran upstairs and tried to lock themselves in the bathroom. Two officers responded to the 911 call, but Michael killed both of them, stabbing them with his large butcher knife. Returning his attention to Laurie, he managed to get a hold of her whereupon Laurie fainted.
Michael carried Laurie back to the house he grew up in. When she awakened, she found herself in the basement of the house, the body of Lynda Van Der Klok and the stolen headstone of Judith Myers lying next to her. Michael silently approached her and dropped to his knees. He set down his knife and pulled an old photograph out of his pocket. The photo was of himself and Laurie when she was still a baby. Laurie didn't understand the significance of the photo, but took the opportunity to scoop up Michael's knife and stab in the shoulder with it.
Laurie escaped from the house and ran across the neighbor's yard where she fell into an emptied swimming pool. Michael was still alive and trailed after her. Suddenly, Michael's old handler Doctor Sam Loomis arrived and shot him several times in the back. Michael collapsed and Loomis helped Laurie out of the pool and into a police squad car. Completely stricken, Laurie asked Loomis, "Was that the Boogey Man?", to which Sam replied, "As a matter of fact... I do believe it was".
From out of nowhere, Michael appeared and pulled Laurie out of the car. He dragged her back inside the house, this time with the intent of killing her. Loomis distracted Michael (at great cost to himself) and Laurie was able to scramble away. Michael began searching for her, punching through walls and weak pieces of plaster. Laurie picked up Doctor Loomis' handgun and climbed into the rafters. While crawling through the ceiling, one of the patches gave way and she fell through to the floor, landing on her face. Michael found her and tackled her, sending them both barreling through a weakened wall onto the upstairs balcony and over the edge onto the ground. Laurie revived first, but her face was completely covered in blood. She picked up the gun again and aimed it at Michael's face. She pressed the trigger several time with no results. Michael suddenly awakened and Laurie pulls the trigger again. The gun fired directly towards Michael's face and Laurie began howling in fear, pain and terror.
She was immediately taken to Haddonfield General Hospital to recuperate. In time, Laurie healed from her injuries, suffering only minimal scarring on her face. The emotional trauma however, was not so easy to heal from. The revelation that her parents had been murdered sent her into a psychological tailspin that only grew as the months passed. Sheriff Brackett invited Laurie to stay with him and his daughter who, likewise survived her encounter with Michael Myers.
Downward spiral[]
Laurie searches for her meds.
Over the next two years, Laurie began seeing a psychiatrist named Doctor Barbara Collier. Collier prescribed Laurie medication, but the young woman's psychological makeup continued to degrade. She found herself prone to fits of rage and she suffered from intense nightmares. In one such nightmare, Laurie saw herself being pursued by Michael Myers on the night she had been admitted to the hospital.
She began working at a coffee-shop/vintage record store known as Uncle Meat's Java Hole where she befriended two of her co-workers named Mya Rockwell and Harley David. It was easier for her to hang out with Mya and Harley than it was with Annie, for every time she saw Annie's facial scars, she became overwhelmed with guilt over what had happened.
By 2009, Laurie's panic attacks grew even worse. She began experiencing waking nightmares that she could not explain. In one of these tormented fantasies, Laurie saw herself dressed up in a Halloween clown costume and murdering Annie. What she didn't realize at the time is that what she was experiencing were actually psychic impressions from the memories of Michael Myers. Laurie began seeing images of young Michael Myers as well as her birth mother Deborah Myers.
Revelations[]
On Halloween night, Laurie's world came crashing down. She discovered that Doctor Sam Loomis had written a second book about Michael Myers, this one detailing the events of the massacre from two years prior. Laurie read the book and learned the truth about her family lineage. Her real name was Angel Myers and she was Michael's little sister.
Distraught, she sought solace in her friends Mya and Harley. She couldn't bear the idea of being Michael's sister and wanted only to drown herself in alcohol and partying. The three of them went to the "Phantom Jam" rave in town and Laurie dressed up as Magenta from the monster musical The Rocky Horror Picture Show. She became heavily intoxicated at the party and began seeing images of Deborah and young Michael trailing after her. After some time had passed, Mya decided to walk Laurie home.
When they arrived back at the Brackett house, Laurie was horrified to discover that not only was Michael Myers still alive, but he had murdered Annie Brackett. Laurie cradled Annie in her arms while Mya called 911. Michael burst into the room and attacked Laurie who fled from the house and ran out onto the highway.
Final Fate[]
The final fate of Laurie Strode.
A passing motorist found Laurie scrambling across the road and offered to take her to the hospital. Myers caught up with them and murdered the young driver. Capturing Laurie, he brought her back to his private cabin in a field off Eagle Road. Laurie came to and saw Michael as well as the images of Deborah and young Michael standing before her. Deborah Myers spoke to Laurie, forcing her to repeat the words "I love you, Mommy" over and over again. Laurie tried to escape but the impression of young Michael held her fast to the chair she was sitting in.
Moments later, police squad cars and helicopters surrounded the house. Doctor Sam Loomis entered the cabin for a final confrontation with Michael. The two fought each other and Michael stabbed Loomis in the stomach outside the cabin. Afterward, the Sheriff's deputies opened fire on him, apparently killing him. Laurie exited the cabin moments later. In a state of shock, she picked up Michael's hunting knife and hovered over Loomis' prone body as if she were going to kill him. The officers opened fire once again and Laurie Strode died in a hail of gunfire. Her final thoughts were that of a brightly lit room with Deborah Myers slowly approaching her, a large white horse walking by her side.
Laurie's Psychosis[]
There are several sign posts positioned throughout Halloween II suggesting that dementia runs through the Myers family line. The first indicator takes place early in the film when Laurie is seen wearing an Ace Frehley t-shirt. Ace Frehley is the former lead guitarist for the 70s rock band KISS. In the first Halloween, young Michael Myers is first seen wearing a KISS t-shirt from their "Destroyer" tour. The foreshadowing of Laurie's devolving mental state is also shown when she first begins to share a psychic bond with Michael. This is first demonstrated by her sudden illness which coincides with Michael eating a freshly-killed dog. Laurie's relationship with Barbara Collier is similar to that of Loomis and young Michael from the first film. One of the most telling signs of Laurie's mental state is her waking dream in which she imagines herself killing Annie Brackett. This scene is filmed exactly as the scene from Halloween in which Michael kills his stepfather Ronnie White. Later in the film, Laurie begins seeing images of Deborah and young Michael Myers, images that up until then had only been experienced by Michael himself. The final shot of the film shows Laurie sitting inside what appears to be a mental institution.
Notes & Trivia[]
- The character of Angel Myers was created by writer and director Rob Zombie based on concepts originally developed by John Carpenter and Debra Hill.
- Both actresses who have played Laurie Strode are credited with three names: Jamie Lee Curtis and Scout Taylor-Compton.
- Playing the role of Laurie Strode is actress Scout Taylor-Compton's fifth feature film acting work.
See also[]
External Links[]
- Laurie Strode at IMDB
- Laurie Strode at Wikipedia
- Laurie Strode at the Halloween Wiki
- Laurie Strode at the Horror Film Wiki
References[]
- ↑ Mother, deceased.
- ↑ Older brother, deceased.
- ↑ Older sister, deceased.
- ↑ Adoptive father, deceased.
- ↑ Adoptive mother, deceased.
- ↑ Date approximated based upon the relative age of the character, who appears to be seventeen in the first film. A cut scene from Halloween II establishes that the character of Mya Rockwell (who appears to be the same age as Laurie), was born in 1990. This fact also cements that timeline of the films as present day.
- ↑ Rob Zombie confirms in the audio commentary for the Halloween II Director's Cut that Laurie Strode dies when she is gunned down by the police. The following scene of Laurie in a mental facility is actually just her final thoughts as she lays dying.