By being titled “Alpha,” writer/director Julia Ducournau’s third film certainly put a large self-imposed target on its back. One doesn’t have to think too hard to envision the onslaught of cheeky reviews and reactions that would be written if the film were not able to ascend to the top of her filmography, a high bar considering that it includes two transformative genre-bending works in Raw and Titane, the latter donning the Palme d’Or. Distributor Neon obviously doesn’t view the project as the alpha in their current catalogue, putting it in timeout for ten months since its confounding premiere at Cannes that included a twelve-minute standing ovation and career-worst reviews. Business is not always indicative of art, with history littered with great films that struggled to see the light of day due to being labeled as uncommercial. However, in the case of Alpha, the correlation does equal causation, with neither side serving the other.

Things start on a positive note as Ducournau renews her title as the most skilled filmmaker when it comes to incorporating music. “Doing It to Death” by The Kills blared from the speakers as protagonist Alexia roamed through a sea of butts and bumpers at the opening car show of Titane. Here, the soft whispering of “Roads” by Portishead sets the mood, with the camera guiding us through a dingy apartment in what’s assumed to be modern-day France. Inside is a party of teenagers, each of them happily exchanging alcohol, joints, and partners. Passed out on the bed is the titular 13-year-old Alpha (Mélissa Boros), who is receiving a stick-and-poke tattoo of the letter “A” on her arm.

It’s never good to have the first scene be the highlight of the film, especially when it’s still majorly flawed. As much as Ducournau’s direction arrestingly captures this poverty-stricken section of the world, there are still so many questions. Why is someone giving Alpha a tattoo? What does it mean? The refusal to give answers quickly impedes the emotional truth, never bestowing us with the confidence to decide anything for ourselves.

For good reason, Alpha’s mother (Golshifteh Farahani) is furious at the sight of her daughter with a scarlet letter on her arm. The world has been plagued by an unknown bloodborne disease, slowly turning its victims to stone, almost like the greyscale from Game of Thrones. There is no cure, and almost all the victims appear to be homosexuals, such as the husband of Alpha’s schoolteacher, and her uncle Amin (Tahar Rahim), who has returned home with the disease after years of living on the streets due to a heroin addiction.

This obvious allegory for the AIDS crisis is surface-level at best, with little support beyond the basic parallels. After receiving a blood test to see if she has the disease, Alpha must wait two weeks to get the results. That's enough time for her anxiety to take control of her psyche, creating fractures between the past and the present. Ducournau's handling of these alternating timelines is frustratingly confusing, with only minor production details hinting at when and where we are in the story.

Also exacerbating her problems is Alpha's constant bullying from her classmates, who already seemed convinced that she has the disease and will infect everyone. The concrete jungle of the school is rendered with a distinct coolness by DP Ruben Impens. Blood, water, and concrete merge as one when Alpha's tattoo scar opens up during PE class, the scene reminiscent of a victim being swallowed by the shark in Jaws.

Just as she did with her previous films, Ducournau conjures some impressive performances from her pressurized cast. Farahani rises way above her pencil-thin characterization, and Rahim is a walking corpse through his immense physical transformation. Boros doesn't quite match up, and she suffers from the terminal disease of her character being of least interest in the ensemble.

It's hard enough to sell an independent film in today's theatrical marketplace. That challenge becomes exponentially tougher when it's not in English. The only way to succeed is to have best-of-year reviews, which only allows for a limited release. Without that, you've got nothing, which is why Alpha will languish in obscurity. It's a shame, as even a highly flawed film such as this deserves more attention than many of the big releases.