Exorcism scene in Beloved

There was a certain resemblance in the climactic scene of Beloved with that in a Brazilian movie of the 1970s, Dona Flor and Her Two Husbands. No one else has ever commented on it, so I guess I ought to.

In both films, the leading lady (Oprah Winfrey and Sonia Braga respectively) is troubled by a ghost who’s come to stay, becomes a major nuisance, and won’t leave her alone (Oprah’s daughter and Sonia’s husband). So she gets a group of black women to exorcise the ghost.

In Beloved, the exorcists are church ladies praying and thumping Bibles. In Dona Flor, they are macumba (voodoo) ladies dancing in a circle and chanting.

The main difference is that Beloved is a very serious gothic drama that gets rid of the troublesome ghost for good. But Dona Flor is an erotic comedy where the very delicious Sonia Braga changes her mind and decides to keep her ghost husband around anyway, because even though he’s a bum, he gives her good sex. The final scene in that movie is hilarious.

There’s also Practical Magic, which I know some people here don’t like, but I do. Nicole Kidman is possessed by the spirit of her abusive boyfriend; her sister gets twelve women together to form a “circle”. Everyone has to bring a broom; one woman misunderstands and brings a Dustbuster. Ultimately, they exorcise him, and use the Dustbuster to sweep up the resultant ashes.