A masterpiece of ethno-fiction by Jean Rouch, that inimitable surrealist of ethnographic film, Madame L'eau follows three African friends on a rollercoaster ride from drought-stricken Niger to inundated Holland and back again. In this sync-sound, trans-Atlantic sequel to Jaguar (and Little by Little), Damouré, Lam, and Tallou fly to Holland to learn about low-tech, sustainable windmills, which might be built along the River Niger. Along the way, they transport a donkey to Amsterdam (and return with three), drive around the submarine Dutch countryside in a large white convertible, and with the help of their new windmills, grow hybrid black tulips on the newly irrigated banks of the Niger-all the while belittling each other constantly. An act of collaborative mythmaking, Madame L'eau is infused with Rouch's idiosyncratic sense of humor, and exemplifies a new kind of truth-seeking, one blending fact and fantasy, rehearsal and improvisation. It is a searing indictment of Western development projects, offering what Rouch calls their "poison-gifts" as tokens of foul "good will."