Batch '81 (1982)

Alpha Kappa Omega, Ang Simula at Wakas ay Kapatiran. Thus goes the credo that initiates us into the subculture of BATCH 81, a probing look inside the secret society of fraternities and the rites of passage one must undergo to gain entry within. Sid Lucero (Mark Gil) wants in. His studies going nowhere, he enlists as a neophyte, and together with his best friend Arni (Rod Leido), university professor Santi (Noel Trinidad), and Ronnie (Ricky Sandico), the son of one of the founding fathers of the frat, they endure the torments inflicted by their masters, submitting to physical and psychological violence, all in the name of brotherhood. Directed by Mike De Leon, the film is an acute portrayal of a fractured culture and the cyclical nature of violence and the politics of fear. First released in the Philippines in 1982, the film has been restored by the Asian Film Archive in 2017.