[5] Set in Chile during the early 1980s under Augusto Pinochet’s rule, the film follows three cadets in a military academy, each occupying a distinct social rank within the informal hierarchy among students.
Pablo, nicknamed “Jaguar,” hails from humble origins and joins the army to climb the social ladder; he’s a strong leader who was the only cadet not subjected to the academy’s humiliating initiation rituals.
Alberto Fernandez, known as “Poet,” holds a middling position, while Ricardo Orana, dubbed “Slave,” is the group’s outcast, enduring mockery and bullying from his peers.
When cadet Cave draws the assignment to break into a classroom to steal exam answers, he accidentally shatters a window, alerting Orana, who is on guard duty in Jaguar's place.
Fernandez, Orana’s friend, accuses Jaguar of being responsible and informs the command about ongoing corruption among the cadets, including illicit drinking, cigarette sales, and trading exam answers.