Tourism has traditionally been presented as a factor of modernization and economic growth for poor nations. But tourism is often developed at the expense of indigenous populations, a growing problem all over the world. This film examines this issue in five countries: Nicaragua, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Mexico and Honduras.

In Nicaragua several developers of luxurious hotels on beachfront property purchased four kilometers of land but have expanded to use more than sixty kilometers. Despite the local community's protests, the national government is actively encouraging developers from abroad to build on this land. Small farmers in Costa Rica complain that new resorts being built are environmentally unsound and depleting the scarce water supply.

The Dominican Republic has beachfront property that is being developed to resemble Cancun, Mexico. Many of the workers are Haitian immigrants who will work for lower wages than the Dominicans. After locals sold their land cheaply, many have been forced into poverty. In Cancun, hotel workers are given twenty-eight-day contracts and no benefits. Professor Celina Izquierdo, Universidad del Caribe, Mexico, says that two distinct styles of life have developed there, that of the tourists and that of the locals. The local people have no economic opportunity and are losing their cultural identity to the encroachment of large international hotels.

On the surface, the film seems to be looking at the clashing of interests—between foreign investors and government officials, on the one hand, and the local population, on the other—during tourism development. Yet the film’s narration and imagery clearly expose the shadows rather than the sun.
‒Anthropology Review Database