The film was released in the Philippines on November 6, 1985, and performed poorly at the box office.
Plot
Arturo "Turing" Manalastas (Phillip Salvador) together with his wife, Luz (Gina Alajar), works in a printing press. Turing is forced to ask for a raise from his boss after his wife becomes pregnant. Turing's boss asks him to sign a waiver that he is not a member of any labor union. Shortly after, his friends invite him to be part of a labor union that they are planning to form but Turing has no option but to refuse due to his waiver. Turing is badly treated and is called a traitor after refusing to join. The printing press later closes and Luz is unable to get discharged from the hospital where she is confined due to pending fees. Turing needs money to pay the hospital bill so Luz can finally get out of the hospital and turns to crime to acquire the money he needs.[3]
The native name of the film "Bayan ko: Kapit sa patalim" was derived from Bayan Ko, a protest song and "Kapit sa Patalim" (Gripping unto a Blade) came from the Filipino saying "Ang taong nagigipit, kahit sa patalim kumakapit" (A desperate person will even grip unto a blade).[3]
Release
The film included actual footage of demonstration which censors did not let the film to be screened in the Philippines. Director Lino Brocka appealed the Supreme Court to let the film be screened in the country. A year after its screening at the Cannes Film Festival, it was allowed to be screened in the Philippines on November 6, 1985 after it was given an R rating by the newly created Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB),[3] and it performed poorly at the box office.[4]
The film was restored in 2020 by Le Chat Qui Fume from the original 35mm camera negatives in 4K resolution.[5] The restored film was premiered on the Cannes Classic section during the 2020 Cannes Film Festival.[6] It was then released on Blu-ray and UHD Blu-ray in 2021.[7]
