MovieChat Forums > Murder of Innocence (1993) Discussion > Something I didn't understand...

Something I didn't understand...


I watched the movie about a month ago but I only watched it from the middle so I didn't see the beginning. Why is the reason that in one scene she starts writing "Laurie Laurie Laurie seven seven seven" and then starts adding up sevens and goes into room seven when she went to the school?

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I bought this movie, and watched it yesterday, I got the impression that the obsession with the number 7 stemmed from the age she was when she was outcast and tormented by other children. you will notice that when she was shooting,she was seeing the faces of those children who had made her life miserable, and therefore she was really killing them. I find it strange that no doctor can come up with any sort of explanation, as to what made her as she was. (If the movie is close to the truth,I thought her parents were in total denial,and had never given her enough love, understanding or support. A very sad story,with a predictable outcome.

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Wow yeah for some reason I didn't even think of age but I was sort of wondering about that myself. I noticed how she's write L also... so I figured 7 would be L upside-down... having something to do with her name. But age 7 makes more sense.

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Actually, the scenes where she visualizes the children tormenting her is a fabrication, of sorts. In the book, there is no explanation for her shooting up the school other than her deep-seated psychosis combined with deep, deep rage. She hated many people; she thought they'd betrayed her.
Laurie had been going insane for many, many years before this incident. Her parents ignored the behavior and used their money to cover up and smooth over incidents with their daughter. The father did not try to intervene until toward the end of her 'psychotic slide'.

She was able to fool a lot of people; she didn't tell much to her shrinks. The shrinks, for the most part seemed like a lot of shrinks.....just collecting a check and they doled out a LOT of pills to her. She took many at once, with the side effects of these combinations being a possible contributor to her deteriorated state.
She favored the number 7 because she had OCD on top of everything, and she thought the number 7 was 'safe'.

The image of the children who laughed at her was used by a man who shot up a school not long after Laurie's rampage. He claimed this was what he saw as he shot them.


"[Success is] to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived."
-B. Stanley

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It's just sad her parents didn't even bother to help.

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You have to remember this took place in 1988. Back then mental illness wasn't understood and also want accepted. My uncle and other family members including myself has fought mental illness. I remember as a kid in the 80s hearing shameful talk of my uncle and an aunt. They had depression plus my uncle saw things and had dilutions. It was not talked about often and spoken in whispers. My grandma was in denial because she she blamed herself. My granddad who died before I was born had felt if his son had more discipline he'd be normal so he blamed my uncle for behavior he couldn't help.

I was put in a mental hospital in the early 90s for a suicide attempt. No one knew where I was. My parents were ashamed and my little sister who was about 10 was told not to tell anyone what happened. My family was ashamed. By the way I'm fine now. I still fight depression at rare times but very happy.

So the way I see it her parents were in denial because of the times. Yes it was wrong of them and they should have admitted it and gotten her help.

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