Comparison between the theatrical version and the extended version (both included on the British Blu-ray by Eureka!)

- One additional scene
- Runtime difference: 62.9 sec (= 1:03 min)

 

Otto Preminger was without question one of the great directors of film history and with Laura he created a milestone of the film noir genre in 1944. Vincent Price, Gene Tierney, Dana Andrews and Clifton Webb can be seen in the thriller, which won an Oscar for its camera work, and the film thematically follows the path of the moral representation of sex and violence on the big screen just enough to appease to the strict Hays Code.

In a scene with benefactor Webb, the beautiful Tierney was placed in a more feminine role model, and in the end it was decided to delete her for the cinema release of the film. According to a statement by 20th Century Fox at the time, there were also concerns that the depiction of decadence and luxury for soldiers stationed abroad during the Second World War would convey an alarming picture. But in the 90's, the scene could be restored and since then it has been included on DVD editions. On the American Blu-ray as well as the Blu-ray available in Great Britain from January 14, 2019, the film can be started in the menu as a theatrical or an extended version.

Runtimes are ordered as follows: Theatrical version Blu-ray / Extended version Blu-ray

21:57 / 21:57-23:00

After "She had an eager mind, always" the scene ends abruptly in the theatrical version by Eureka! (incl. the suddenly stopping music), so that you can already see that the cut was reconstructed from the Extended Version.

Waldo: "She was always quick to seize upon anything that would improve her mind or her appearance. Laura had innate breeding. But she deferred to my judgement and taste. I selected a more attractive hair dress for her. I taught her what clothes were more becoming to her. Through me, she met everyone, the famous and the infamous. Her youth and beauty, her poise and charm of manner captivated them all. She had warmth, vitality. She had authentic magnetism. Wherever we went, she stood out. Men admired her. Women envied her. She became as well-known as Waldo Lydecker's walking stick and his white carnation."
By means of many soft crossfades you can see a montage of how Laura is accompanied at all sorts of social occasions.

62,9 sec (= 1:03 min)