Picture 1 taken from website https://www.imdb.

com/title/tt04244998/

Alpha is a historical adventure film of a group of hunter in Upper Palaeolithic Europe

which happens around 20,000 years in the past. The film was mainly records an
expedition to hunt of the group of hunter as food storage for upcoming winter
season. Hence, weapon is the most important element that can clearly show the
living norms of people in that period.

From the film, we can observe that the weapon used in the film was match to the
history. The main Weapon used to hunting in this film was spear thrower and darts
which shown at the picture below. During Upper Palaeolithic Europe, Hunter would
use their long, thin and flexible darts launched from a spear thrower or atlatl, which
was a lever which allowed them to get a much greater range and force for their
shafts.

Picture 2, taken from website https://www.imdb.com/title/tt04244998/

 Picture 3, taken from website https://www.behance.net/gallery/14991619/A-boy-
using-atatl-(paleolithic-spear-thrower)

According to Don Hitchcock (2018), instead of a flint point, the head of the spear
often had a harpoon carved from reindeer antler, with the harpoon mounted in such
a way that it parted company with the shaft when the reindeer was struck, and
there was less chance of either being broken. Due to the extra leverage gained, the
spear thrower gave much greater speed and distance to the spear.

Throwing spears and arrows had sharp flint points shaped according to changing
fashions; the soil still contains relics of 10 000 years of hunting - the small
arrowheads of flint that made the hunters' weapons so fatally effective.

Picture 4, taken from website

https://www.roanoke.com/arts_and_entertainment/movies/movie-review-alpha-is-
simple-but-will-melt-any-dog/article_aed408d3-014c-5b28-90cd-d7950db04dfc.html

During the Upper Palaeolithic Europe, people learn to use or make fire to cook,
provided warmth and to scare away wild animals. According to Public school of
North Carolina (2018), Palaeolithic people learned that by rubbing two pieces of
wood together which then the wood became heated and charred. When the wood
became hot enough, it caught fire. After that, they continued rubbing wood together,
eventually developing drill-like wooden tools to start fires as shown in picture 5.
They also discovered that a certain stone, iron pyrite, gave off sparks when struck
against another rock. In addition, the sparks could then ignite dry grass or leaves-
another way to start a fire.

Picture 5, taken from website

https://www.google.com/search?q=fire+sparks+in+paleolithic&safe=active&tbm=is
ch&source=iu&ictx=1&fir=N4PsC8NlQmFbjM%253A%252Cn2QJKIdXDLccrM%252C_
&usg=AI4_-kTLybE2i14JMAaV-uGXrLpcnZoBuQ&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj7gtGbv-
TdAhXMLY8KHbnhBkYQ9QEwAnoECAQQCA#imgrc=N4PsC8NlQmFbjM:

Reference

Don Hitchcock (2018, September 03). Ice Age Hunters in Northern Europe.
Retrieved from https://www.donsmaps.com/iceagehunters.html

Public school of North Carolina (2018). 6th Grade social studies (Hunter-gathers).
Retrieved from https://nsms6thgradesocialstudies.weebly.com/hunter-gatherers.html