Before watching the film Alpha, which hit theaters August 17, I wasn’t really sure what to expect. Having watched a trailer for it a long time before actually seeing it, I didn’t really know what it was about or how much depth could be achieved from this story line. However, this film really surprised me. I was incredibly moved by the power and meaning behind this story, and it is probably the best film I’ve seen this year.

Alpha goes back 20,000 years to follow the journey of a tribe in Europe. The hunters embark on a weeklong journey to find the buffalo feeding grounds, where they will risk everything to maintain the tribe’s food supply for the winter ahead. Keda, the chief’s son on the verge of adulthood, has earned the responsibility to hunt with the men for the first time. After a deadly encounter with a buffalo, Keda is presumed dead by his tribe and is left behind. The story follows Keda’s quest for survival as he tries to get back to his tribe on the verge of winter. After Keda finds an injured wolf who was abandoned by her pack, the two form an unlikely bond and try to find their way home.

Right from the opening of the film, I found gripping, suspenseful, action-packed scenes. It was a smart choice to begin with the buffalo hunt, starting the film with a very intense and emotional scene before going back to the week before it. Even though I didn’t even know who the characters were or what they were doing I was on their side. After going back to the week before, the movie showed interesting, yet slower, bits of information. I found myself already emotionally invested after the buffalo hunt, and therefore I was hooked to the plot in a more effective way than if the movie would have just started from the week before. Also, the opening helped to set the tone for the rest of the film, and wasted no time to establish the mood.

Keda was very different from others in his tribe. He was more timid than the other hunters, and struggled to fit into a leadership role. Once he was on his own, he was forced to push through his obstacles and gained a greater sense of bravery. As he learned new things such as making fire, he learned patience. As he learned how to care for the wolf, he learned leadership and responsibility. Keda’s personality varied from other leaders in his tribe, and his journey allowed him to mature and understand how he could be a good leader. He also had a good understanding of what he needed to do as he used everything he was taught and every tool he had been give to survive.

My favorite part of this movie was watching Keda’s relationship with the wolf develop. When he found her, despite not having a strong desire to care for her, Keda felt in his gut that killing this wolf would be the wrong thing to do. In their first days spent together, the two were injured and didn’t have enough strength to move. This equalized them and taught them to tolerate each other while both just wanted to return home. Their fondness for each other grew, bringing care and loyalty with it. Keda named the wolf Alpha, and he assumed the leadership role in their pack of two. Alpha allowed Keda to learn about being a leader as he made it clear that although he was in charge, he would always care for Alpha. He protected her, fed her, cleaned her, and cared for Alpha’s wounds. They taught each other many things, but above all they learned how to work together. They had a mutual understanding and respect for one another that made both incredibly loyal. When Alpha was too weak to continue Keda carried her because he didn’t want to leave her behind. Their bond was portrayed in such a genuine and real way, and it went far beyond my expectations.

Alpha made me think a lot about relationships. Relationships in this film looked and felt very different than relationships today. Every connection from Keda and Alpha to the members of the tribe was filled with so much intention and purpose. Every person in the tribe approached others with honor and respect. Every instinct was focused on the needs of others and how they could work together to meet them. I have never seen people live and approach other with so much intention, and I think that is an important thing to learn from this film.

A unique choice made by the filmmakers was how they approached language. The characters spoke in an unidentifiable language similar to something that would have been used in the time period, and there were subtitles below. This was a great idea, as it helped shape the mood of the film. Language was used very thoughtfully in Alpha, as every piece of dialogue gave more insight to the characters. The actors in this film did a phenomenal job of using their eyes and expressions to communicate, which said even more than the dialogue could express. I could clearly understand how the characters were feeling without even needing words, and therefore dialogue was only used when absolutely necessary.

The only thing I felt was missing from the film was more about the rest of the hunters’ journey home. I understand why these things were not included; it kept the focus of the story on Keda. In a way it allowed me to understand his isolation more by seeing only him, but I still would have liked to see more from the others. I wanted to see the tribe’s journey home compared to Keda’s, as well as being reunited with the ones back home, and I felt a little disconnected from their side of the story.

Witnessing the harsh reality of survival while watching Keda find out who he was meant to be was emotional and very well done. Not only was the story line clearly thought-out, but the character development and relationships were as well. The unique camera shots and transitions made every detail seamlessly flow together in one beautiful movie. This gave me a lot of perspective on how people lived long ago, and how similar we are to people back then although we live very differently. I give Alpha a 4 out of 5 stars; it is an incredible tale of triumph and struggle that I look forward to watching again.