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Drama

Story of Women (1988): Cast & Plot

Story of Women (1988) movie poster

Story of Women is a 1988 drama directed by Claude Chabrol, starring Isabelle Huppert as Marie Latour, François Cluzet and Henri Attal. It runs 1 hour 48 minutes.

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Read the plot summary
Story of Women (1988) movie poster
Released
Runtime
1h 48m (108 min)
Director
Claude Chabrol
Genre
Drama
Original language
French
Studio
MK2 Films
After the credits
No No extra scene
The story

What Is Story of Women About?

The premise of Story of Women without spoilers. The whole story is in the plot summary further down.

Set in France during World II, Marie Latour, a mother of two, turns to performing illegal abortions and takes in a prostitute as a boarder to make ends meet. Her husband, crippled from the war, drifts apart from her. As the clandestine abortions become increasingly lucrative, Marie seeks excitement in a youthful affair to break her boredom.

Story of Women Themes & Keywords

· 50 tags
  • abortion
  • nazi soldier
  • female criminal
  • husband wife estrangement
  • jew
  • pantyhose
  • nazi occupied france
  • wehrmacht
  • brothel
  • sexuality
  • french justice
  • french prostitute
+38 more
  • prostitute
  • death sentence
  • nazi collaborator
  • adulterous wife
  • lingerie
  • scantily clad female
  • cleavage
  • women's prison
  • made an example of
  • death row
  • adultery
  • goose
  • dysfunctional marriage
  • unwanted pregnancy
  • little girl
  • prostitution
  • street prostitution
  • back alley abortion
  • world war two
  • based on true story
  • criminal
  • breaking the law
  • killing an animal
  • cutout
  • key under a mat
  • normandy france
  • billiards
  • billiard table
  • starvation
  • betrayal
  • nazi
  • exemplary punishment
  • street prostitute
  • woman in a bathtub
  • death row inmate
  • working class
  • impotence
  • new apartment
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Cast & crew

Story of Women Cast & Characters

Isabelle Huppert leads the cast as Marie Latour, with François Cluzet as Paul Latour and Henri Attal as Un poicier au procès. Directed by Claude Chabrol; 24 actors are credited in all.

Also Starring in Story of Women

· 20 more
Show all 24 cast members
From the director

More from Claude Chabrol

More films directed by Claude Chabrol, best-rated first: The Girl Cut in Two, The Bridesmaid, Merci Pour Le Chocolat and The Flower of Evil.

Full filmography
Plot

Story of Women Plot Summary

What happens in Story of Women from start to finish, spoilers included, with a timeline of 11 key events. The opening is below; the full summary is a 2-minute read.

Spoilers ahead

Under the German military administration in occupied France during World War II, Marie Latour struggles to keep life afloat with her two children in a cramped, squalid flat, while Paul Latour — a prisoner of war in Germany — fights to stay alive and support them from afar. The stark contrast between confinement and desperation grounds the story in the daily grind of wartime survival, where small acts can bend toward moral compromise and necessity.

A neighboring family, whose husband is likewise sent abroad, faces a desperate situation when the wife becomes pregnant and tries to end the pregnancy. Marie helps her through this crisis, a practical, unsettling choice that drags her deeper into a gray zone where personal need clashes with social rules.

Full summary

The whole story of Story of Women, scene by scene

Read the full summary
Quiz

How Well Do You Know Story of Women?

10 questions about the story, each with a hint if you get stuck. Pick an answer to see whether you were right.

Question 1 of 10

  1. Question 1: not answered
  2. Question 2: not answered
  3. Question 3: not answered
  4. Question 4: not answered
  5. Question 5: not answered
  6. Question 6: not answered
  7. Question 7: not answered
  8. Question 8: not answered
  9. Question 9: not answered
  10. Question 10: not answered

Under whose military administration does the film take place?
Details

Story of Women Also Known As

19 alternative titles, including “Den sorte engel” and “A Story of Women”.

Also known as
  • Den sorte engel
  • A Story of Women
  • Naisten asioita
  • Shufu Marî ga Shita Koto
  • Un asunto de mujeres
  • Un affare di donne
  • Asunto de mujeres
  • Eine Frauensache
  • Женское дело
  • 여자 이야기
  • Női ügyek
  • Bir Kadın Meselesi
+7 more
  • Женски работи
  • Svart ängel
  • Um Assunto de Mulheres
  • 女人韵事
  • עסקי נשים
  • Γυναικεία υπόθεση
  • Sprawa kobiet

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Movies Like Story of Women

Films with a similar story, tone or audience, including A French Woman, For a Woman and Women in the Night.

FAQ

Story of Women FAQ: Cast, Runtime & Release Date

Runtime, release date, director, cast, post-credit scenes and language of Story of Women, each answered in a sentence.

How long is Story of Women?

Story of Women runs 1 hour 48 minutes (108 minutes).

When was Story of Women released?

Story of Women was released on September 2, 1988.

Who directed Story of Women?

Story of Women was directed by Claude Chabrol.

More films by Claude Chabrol

Who is in the cast of Story of Women?

Story of Women stars Isabelle Huppert as Marie Latour, François Cluzet as Paul Latour and Henri Attal as Un poicier au procès, among 24 credited actors.

Does Story of Women have a post-credit scene?

No. Story of Women has no extra scene during or after the credits.

What language is Story of Women in?

The original language of Story of Women is French.

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