But “Goncharov” is definitely a meme — or, to be extra exact, the work of lots of of individuals the world over who collectively developed the backstory and all of the plot components of a film that, nicely, has by no means existed.
“This became almost like ‘Argo,’ ” stated Jamie Cohen, a media research professor at CUNY Queens College, referencing the phony sci-fi movie CIA brokers used as a entrance to free hostages in Iran in 1979. “But this is a bit more complex because it’s creating some sort of wide-scale fan fiction — almost with the idea of manifesting a movie into reality. At the same time, it’s also a bit of a collective joke or prank.”
Goncharov was inexplicably forward of it time and it’s contribution to cinema is outstanding. Rarely does a movie inform as many diverse-yet-interconnected tales.
Hard to think about so few ppl have seen it. https://t.co/mKY6Ydya4U
— tumblr dot com the web site and app (@tumblr) November 20, 2022
Like “Girl Explaining” and “Distracted Boyfriend,” the pretend Scorsese flick falls beneath the strict definition of a meme: “something that’s digital, made online with awareness of other memes and allows other people to replicate it or remix it,” Cohen stated. But on the similar time, “Goncharov” isn’t just a nonetheless picture being shared with new textual content overlays; it’s a digital storytelling cacophony, mashing up fan fiction with audio and visuals.
In different phrases, “Goncharov” is a meme on steroids. And its origins return to a years-old put up of a shoe with a bizarre label on Tumblr, a microblogging-focused social media website based in 2007.
In 2020, Tumblr consumer zootycoon posted a couple of pair of “knockoff boots” bought on-line that referenced a “nonexistent” Scorsese film. The tag learn: “THE GREATEST MAFIA MOVIE EVER MADE, MARTIN SCORSESE PRESENTS GONCHAROV, DOMENICO PROCACCI PRODUCTION, A FILM…ABOUT THE NAPLES MAFIA.”
A yr later, the put up was reshared together with a screenshot of a sarcastic reply that learn, “this idiot hasn’t seen goncharov.” As of this week, lots of have piled on with plot concepts, scene scripts and even music for a film that adopted Goncharov, a Russian man attempting to shake off his hit-man way of life by retiring to Naples within the ’70s.
The plot goes as follows: In his quest for normalcy, Goncharov falls in love along with his sworn enemy, Andrey “The Banker” Daddano. At the identical time, Goncharov’s spouse, Katya, has a fling with a lady named Sofia. In the midst of all of it, there’s an ice-pick-wielding villain. And, spoiler alert: Most of the characters finally wind up lifeless, together with Goncharov, who’s not solely killed however betrayed.
How a shoe label impressed an internet-fueled pretend movie continues to be a little bit of a thriller. However, Tumblr consumer @dogsuffrage posited that “Goncharov” was most likely a misspelled model of “Gomorrah,” the identify of a 2008 Scorsese-supported movie.
Regardless, the movie’s cult following finally spilled onto Twitter and TikTok — to the utter confusion of some customers, who initially thought “Goncharov” was an actual deal. That’s the way it turned a working joke that even Scorsese himself appeared to acknowledge in a TikTok video posted Saturday by his daughter, Francesca.
“Yes. I made that film years ago,” Scorsese texted again when Francesca requested if he’d seen the information about “Goncharov.”
More than an try at gaslighting the world with a pretend film, Cohen stated “Goncharov” represents the end result “of interesting pieces of internet ephemera from the 2010s” — a decade marked by the proliferation of fan fiction and fan artwork. It additionally underscores “a new sort of Tumblr revival,” because the social media platform positive aspects new customers amid Elon Musk’s Twitter takeover.
“Tumblr has always been good at those threaded, stacked replies where people build off each other,” Cohen stated. “It was the perfect space for this to go viral, especially as people are migrating away from Twitter’s chaos.”
tumblr has been speaking a couple of martin scorsese film known as goncharov and i used to be getting actually into it, actually wanting ahead to watching it, after which it turned out they made it up fully
— d🔶 (@davemakes) November 21, 2022
Yet, like so many different memes, Cohen stated “Goncharov” is likely to be nearing its web peak.
“When memes become mainstream, the lure, secrecy and the internet ownership goes with it,” he stated. Nevertheless, “Goncharov” has been a vivid spot for social media — a glowing instance that the digital world can really be a enjoyable place.
“For all the nastiness and chaos, this is at least one of those moments that give you hope because it’s a participatory, positive experience in which people find joy and don’t get hurt,” Cohen added.