Shot in both Latin America and the United States, the film explores the historic and current relationship of Washington with countries such as Venezuela, Bolivia and Chile. According to Pilger, his film “…tells a universal story… analysing and revealing, through vivid testimony, the story of great power behind its venerable myths. It allows us to understand the true nature of the so-called “war on terror”. Pilger believes the film’s message is that the greed and power of empire is not invincible and that people power is always the “seed beneath the snow”.