Memoirs of a French Whore

Memoirs of a French Whore, originally La Dérobade, is a 1979 French drama film directed by Daniel Duval. Screenwriter Christopher Frank adapted it from Jeanne Cordelier's autobiographical novel of the same name, published in 1976.

The film follows Marie, a nineteen-year-old weary of her dull, hopeless existence in the suburbs. Seduced by Gérard, a smooth-talking charmer she meets in a café, she abandons her parents and her shop assistant job to move in with him. Gérard, however, turns out to be a pimp and soon coerces her into prostitution. Working first in a brothel, then on the streets and in the Bois de Boulogne, Marie sinks ever deeper into an existence marked by violence and degradation.

Miou-Miou, Maria Schneider and Niels Arestrup head the cast. The film stands out as a grim, socially realistic portrait of prostitution in contemporary France.