When Pigs Have Wings

The passion between a woman, her husband and her friend. A court case ensues, the consequences of which are dramatic for them, their families and their community. Wiping the Tears takes us to the Ovahimba community of Etanga, a small village located in north-western Namibia. The film plunges us into the impassioned story between a woman, her husband and her friend, and the trial that opposes them, the consequences of which could be dramatic for them, for their respective families as well as for the members of their community. Central to this question are the cattle, source of wealth in this cattle farming culture. Through their endearing and sometimes troubling testimonies, the three protagonists deliver with intense emotion their own version of the tragic events that have changed their lives. Then, during the successive customary law trial hearings, they reveal the passionate relationship lived as a threesome for several months. These hearings allow the elders attending the trial to recall the customs of marriage law, women's rights and the sharing of cattle. And the other younger men openly mock the cuckolded husband, the friend who lost his entire herd for the love of a woman or the wife who will finally have risked losing both husband and friend. Through this story at once tragic, poignant and funny, some of the key notions of Ovahimba culture are revealed. —Rina Sherman