DONA FLOR AND HER TWO HUSBANDS: Revisiting An Erotic Comedy Classic

Forty-six years ago, the legendary actress Sônia Braga shot to international stardom on the strength of the provocative comedy Dona Flor and Her Two Husbands. Based on the 1966 novel of the same name by Jorge Amado, the film tells the story of a woman in 1940s Brazil who finds herself torn between her current husband⁠—a respectable but staid pharmacist⁠ — and her deceased one⁠ — a wildly irresponsible but incredibly erotic gambler who has suddenly re-entered her life as a ghost. Now available in a gorgeous new restoration from Film Movement Classics, it’s safe to say that being haunted has never looked as deliciously good as it does here.

Design for Living

When the infamous Vadinho (José Wilker) abruptly drops dead while dancing in the streets, he leaves behind a beautiful widow, Flor (Braga). Almost everyone who knows Flor thinks this is for the best; Vadinho was a gambling addict who blew Flor’s savings on roulette, cheated on her with prostitutes, and even beat her. Irresponsible and unreliable, he seemed to have nothing in common with Flor, who runs successful cooking classes. But what all these judgmental friends and neighbors don’t know is that Flor put up with Vadinho’s shenanigans because the sex between them was absolutely magnificent; knowing that she will never again feel his touch is, for her, a source of immense grief.

Nonetheless, Flor now has a second chance to find a husband that will actually treat her right outside of the bedroom. She thinks she has found him in Teodoro (Mauro Mendonça), a successful pharmacist who courts her with the respect she deserves. Alas, on their wedding night, Flor discovers that there is another way in which Teodoro differs from Vadinho: he cannot satisfy her sexually. If Vadinho was all fire, burning through life with insatiable desires ⁠- for better or for worse⁠ – Teodoro is an absolute wet blanket. In frustration, Flor wishes for the return of Vadinho. What she doesn’t expect is for him to actually show up in the form of a ghost, naked and ready to tempt her away from her new husband.

A Matter of Life and Death

Directed by Bruno Barreto when he was a mere twenty years old, Dona Flor and Her Two Husbands is a richly funny and incredibly sexy look at one woman’s attempts to come to terms with all of her various, conflicting desires. Flor wants to be treated right by her husband, live in a respectable home, wear elegant clothes, and move in the right circles of society⁠ — but she also wants to be ravished to within an inch of her life. Whereas Flor’s first husband was incapable of being controlled, her second is so tightly wound that it’s veritably impossible to set him free. Neither man can fully satisfy her⁠ — but in combination, they become the perfect man. And with one being a ghost who is only visible to Flor anyway, it’s all too easy for her to ask herself, “why not both?”

It’s also easy to see why every man in Bahia would want to win Flor’s hand, as Braga’s beauty is almost overwhelming throughout Dona Flor and Her Two Husbands. She is, in a word, stunning⁠—as is the entire film, shot in Pelourinho, the historical center of Salvador de Bahia, by cinematographer Murilo Salles. The film’s color palette, from the architecture of the buildings to the fabrics of Flor’s wardrobe, is rich and pleasing to the eye and adds to the film’s considerable sensuality. Indeed, everything about Dona Flor and Her Two Husbands begs to be experienced with all of the senses: from the smells and tastes of Flor’s expert cooking, to the touch of bare skin slick with sweat, to the music by Chico Buarque that comprises most of the soundtrack. It’s hard to think of another film where literally every aspect has benefitted so fully from being restored to its former glory.

Of course, it’s not just Braga’s beauty that draws one’s attention and admiration throughout Dona Flor and Her Two Husbands, but her performance as well. She is lovely and funny, tough and sensitive, willing to stand up for what she believes she deserves but also willing to put up with a lot for the sake of some good sex. Flor’s dual frustrations over Teodoro’s inability to satisfy and then Vadinho’s insistence on tempting her from beyond the grave make for great comedy; she even turns to local practitioners of Candomblé, an African diasporic religion, and begs them to find a way to banish Vadinho back to the other realm before she can betray poor Teodoro. (The two contrasting religions of Catholicism and Candomblé form a throughline that runs throughout the film, right up until the film’s infamous final shot of Flor exiting church with a husband on each arm.) The chemistry between Wilker and Braga is so steamy, though, that one can easily guess what Flor will decide to do in the end⁠ — and honestly, who can blame her?

Conclusion:

There’s no time like the present to revisit the supernatural throuple at the heart of Dona Flor and Her Two Husbands and be reminded that Sonia Braga is one of international cinema’s brightest-ever stars.

What do you think? What are your favorite Brazilian films? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

The 4K restoration of Dona Flor and Her Two Husbands was released on Blu-ray, DVD and digital by Film Movement Classics on July 26, 2022.

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