| Alpha | |
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 French theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Julia Ducournau |
| Written by | Julia Ducournau |
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| Starring |
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| Cinematography | Ruben Impens |
| Edited by | Jean-Christophe Bouzy |
| Music by | Jim Williams |
Production companies | |
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Running time | 128 minutes[5] |
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| Box office | $853,796[6] |
Alpha is a 2025body horrordrama film written and directed byJulia Ducournau. StarringTahar Rahim,Golshifteh Farahani, Mélissa Boros,Emma Mackey,Finnegan Oldfield and Louai El Amrousy, it follows a teen girl who, after returning from school with a tattoo, is feared to have contracted a new lethal bloodborne disease.
The film had its world premiere at the main competition of the2025 Cannes Film Festival on 19 May, where it was nominated for thePalme d'Or.[7] It was theatrically released in France by Diaphana Distribution on 20 August 2025. It received mixed reviews from critics, who praised the acting, especially Rahim's performance, but criticized the screenplay.
Alpha is a 13-year-old rebellious teenager living with her single unnamed mother ofBerber origin somewhere in coastal France. At an earlier point in time a strange new contagious blood-borne disease begins to spread. Alpha’s mother is a doctor and works in a ward with patients who are slowly turning intomarble. The film follows both timelines concurrently.
In the present Alpha receives astick and poke tattoo at a party with her friend Adrien. When Alpha's tattoo becomes infected, her mother becomes concerned that her daughter may have the strange disease. Alpha begins to have panic attacks.
Alpha’s uncle Amin moves into his sister's home so she can take care of him while he fights to get off of heroin. Amin begins reconnecting with his niece.
Meanwhile, sometime in the past, the hospital where Alpha's mother works has run out of beds and begins turning sick people away. Alpha’s mother helps some people who have received medical care. At home, Amin overdoses and is resuscitated by Alpha’s mother. Alpha’s grandmother believes the “Red Wind” is causing his condition.
In the present, Alpha is the target of bullying at school; she also begins a secret affair with Adrien, kissing him in a bathroom. Two weeks pass since Alpha’s tattoo, and her mother takes her to the hospital for blood testing. While waiting to take her blood test, Alpha encounters her English teacher. The English teacher is with his boyfriend, who is infected with the disease and has already partially turned to stone. Students begin to spread rumors that Alpha has the mysterious disease. Alpha’s bullying continues. Adrien accuses Alpha of giving him the disease.
Alpha and her mother and uncle Amin attend a family gathering. Amin sneaks away to buy heroin andoverdoses. Alpha’s mother is able to successfully resuscitate him, again. At school, the bullying of Alpha climaxes during a swimming lesson. Alpha's mother is brought in for a meeting by the school principal, who demands a negative test result following the pressure of several parents. Alpha returns to school, while her English teacher arrives late and cries during class.
After Alpha’s test come back negative, Alpha's mother continues to fixate on the possibility of her daughter’s contagion. Alpha’s mother makes a cut on her finger and exchanges blood with her daughter to ensure they will have the same fate. Alpha’s mother gets into a fight with Amin about his addiction, the mysterious disease and her treatment of Alpha.
In the past, Amin has the mysterious disease and is examined by Alpha’s mother. Alpha’s mother accidentally injures Amin while taking a sample, and red dust begins to pour uncontrollably from Amin’s wound.
In the present, Alpha’s mother forbids Alpha from leaving her room, locking her indoors with her uncle Amin who is still going through withdrawals. Alpha’s panic attacks become more frequent. Amin helps Alpha sneak out of the house. Amin brings Alpha to a nightclub filled with people suffering from the mystery disease. The two celebrate their rebellion together, until Amin abandons Alpha to get high.
Alpha walks alone to Adrien’s house. The two undress with the intention of having sex. Alpha sees that Adrien has a matching tattoo to hers, and learns that he was also tattooed at the same party that she was. Alpha is upset with Adrien for accusing her of giving him the disease and leaves. Both have tested negative.
Alpha catches a bus and finds her uncle Amin already onboard. Amin asks Alpha to promise him that she will prevent him from being resuscitated if he overdoses again. The two get off at a beachside stop and Amin leaves Alpha again to try to buy heroin.
In the past, Alpha’s mother calls home from the hospital and her mother chastises her for leaving a young Alpha in Amin's care. She does not know where Amin or Alpha are.
In the present Alpha finds Amin overdosing and runs to a nearby motel to call her mother.
Simultaneously in the past and present, Alpha’s mother arrives at the motel to meet her daughter. In the past, she tells a young Alpha to stay in the bathroom while she helps her brother commit suicide by overdose to avoid the pain of the disease. As Amin begins to fall unconscious, she yells for the young Alpha to give her her bag. In the present, Alpha tells her mother that she has promised to allow Amin to die peacefully. In the past, her mother pulls the bag out of young Alpha’s arms and uses a needle filled with adrenaline to resuscitate Amin.
Amin’s disease progresses, ultimately leading to his death during Alpha's early childhood. Amin's existence in the present day is revealed to be a phantom of Alpha’s familial trauma.
In the present, Alpha’s mother wakes up in the motel and Alpha tells her that Amin cannot be allowed to come home with them. Alpha’s mother agrees and the two leave to drive Amin home. A red dust storm envelopes the streets as they drive. The three of them get out of the car as the wind whips red dust into the air. Alpha’s mother walks Amin to the door while Alpha watches, dust coating her face. Amin disintegrates in the wind, and Alpha’s mother collapses with grief. Alpha watches.
The film has been described by distributorsFilmNation Entertainment and Charades as writer/directorJulia Ducournau's "most personal, profound work".[8] The fictitious disease featured in the film has been analyzed by most critics as an allegory forHIV/AIDS, with the plot reflecting the beginning of theHIV/AIDS epidemic in the 1980s and its aftermath in the 90s.[9]
Principal photography took place inLe Havre in September and October 2024.[10][11] From 23–24 October onward, a public swimming pool inPont-Audemer was used as a filming location, chosen for its 1980s appearance.[12] 35 days were spent filming inNormandy,[2] followed by continued filming in Paris into November.[13][11] Rahim lost 20 kilograms for his role.[14][15]
Neon bought North American distribution rights at the Marché du Film of the2024 Cannes Film Festival, having distributed Ducournau's previous filmTitane (2021).[16] The film competed for thePalme d'Or at the2025 Cannes Film Festival, where it had its world premiere on 19 May 2025.[17][18] The film will be distributed byMubi in Latin America and India, andCurzon Film in the United Kingdom and Ireland.[19] It was also showcased at the53rd Norwegian International Film Festival in Main Programme section on 16 August 2025.[20] The film was released in Belgium on 3 September.[21]
The film opened the58th Sitges Film Festival on 9 October 2025.[22]
It competed for a Bronze Horse Best Film award at the2025 Stockholm International Film Festival on November 13, 2025.[23][24]
On thereview aggregator websiteRotten Tomatoes, 57% of 61 critics' reviews are positive. The website's consensus reads: "Strong performances and a visually striking finale notwithstanding,Alpha ultimately frustrates with its unwieldy structure and imbalanced blend of fantastical and realistic elements."[25]Metacritic, which uses aweighted average, assigned the film a score of 50 out of 100, based on 19 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.[26]
David Ehrlich ofIndiewire called the film "dismal" and Ducournau's "first unambiguous misfire," andPeter Bradshaw ofThe Guardian wrote in aone-star review that "the madly, bafflingly overwrought and humourless storytelling can’t overcome the fact that everything [in the film] is frankly unpersuasive and tedious."[27][28] However, in a more positive review, Radhika Seth ofVogue stated that the film "feels destined to become acult classic," and praised the performances of Boros, Farahani, and Rahim.[29] M. Sellers Johnson of Offscreen offers that Ducournau's film "instills love as an ethos of memory and mourning," but will "undoubtedly divide fans of her previous ventures."[30] He continues that "Durcournau propels the canon ofcinema du corps, to not only provocate corporeal intensities and curiosities of the living but to honor the deceased and the love that reverberates, even after our bodies crumble and float on into the ether."[31]
| Award | Date of ceremony | Category | Recipient(s) | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cannes Film Festival | 24 May 2025 | Palme d'Or | Julia Ducournau | Nominated | [32] |
| Queer Palm | Nominated |
