Kinatay 2009

Newly-wed Peping, a criminology student, balances his studies with a murkier side job: collecting drug money for a shady syndicate. On a routine night shift at Luneta Park, his friend Abyong informs him that their boss, Kap, needs him for another secret operation. Peping reluctantly agrees and climbs into a waiting van with Kap, Sarge, a tough companion, and the driver Rommel.

The van heads to a nightclub where Madonna, a sex worker who works under their circle, is coaxed to speak with Kap. Inside the van, Madonna is suddenly beaten and restrained with duct tape. Just as they’re about to drive onto the NLEX tollway, an unseen boss, Gen, calls Kap and orders them to abandon Madonna. Sarge and the other man beat her unconscious, and the group assumes she is dead. On the expressway, a police car momentarily pursues them, but another driver is eventually stopped.

They retreat to a remote house and haul Madonna’s body to a basement. Sarge tests her with a bucket of water to see if she’s still alive. Peping learns from Abyong that Madonna carried a debt of more than ₱100,000 worth of drugs. Kap orders Peping, Abyong, and Rommel to buy food and liquor while Gen remains in a meeting. Inside the van, Abyong calms Peping and hands him a licensed gun—a gift from Kap and a supposed “cure for nervousness.” At a local store, Rommel tells Peping to pick up balut at the nearby bus station. Peping even tries to slip away by bus, but is forced to return to the van.

Back at the house, the other men enter the basement after Kap receives a call from Gen implying that it’s time. Madonna pleads for forgiveness, but Kap walks away, insisting that “business is business.”

business is business

The brutality intensifies: Madonna is beaten by Sarge and then raped by Chico; Chico ends her life with a bolo knife, and her remains are dismembered and packed into sacks. The men haul the sacks to the van and erase the crime by cleaning the room of any evidence.

On the road again, the group discards the body parts along the way. They stop at a local eatery and order lechon kawali, though Peping loses his appetite after throwing up in the restroom. He asks if he can leave, and Kap gives him money for his baby’s milk, saying he’ll eventually get used to it. A news reporter later speaks to residents about a severed head found in a garbage dump. Peping finally rides a taxi home, where his wife Cecille prepares breakfast while cradling their baby.