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What's 'Goncharov' (1973)? Viral Unreality Fandom From Tumblr Explained
Within a span of few days, Tumblr fabricated an entire fandom about a 1973 mafia movie by Martin Scorcese about a Russian-born mafia boss named Goncharov, rich with drama and homoerotic undertones. How did the charismatic Russian mafioso win over Tumblr? Read all about what Goncharov is and what it's all about in our brief explainer.
What Is Goncharov (1973)?
Goncharov is supposed to be a 1973 crime drama movie directed by Martin Scorsese about a Russian-born mafia boss named of Goncharov living in Naples. The film apparently follows Goncharov's crime career amid his personal conflicts with his estranged wife Katya, his friend Andrey Daddano and other characters. The main twist is that, despite having a poster, a plot, movie GIFs, a soundtrack and tons of fan art, Goncharov does not actually exist.
Instead, the "film" represents the effort of Tumblr users who, inspired by a shoe tag of all things, have collectively decided that this previously unknown Martin Scorsese masterpiece should not only become a thing, but also have a massive fandom surrounding it.
Which answers the question: does a fandom actually need the actual media it's supposed to surround to exist? Apparently no.
Where Does Gocnahrov Come From?
The story of Goncharov, the "greatest mafia movie (n)ever made," starts with a photograph of a knockoff boot posted by Tumblr user zootycoon sometime before August 22nd, 2020. On the photograph, a label is clearly visible. Instead of having a brand name on it, the label displays a brief description of Goncharov, a movie supposedly directed by Domenico Procacci and presented by Martin Scorcese. As it was later discovered, the label almost entirely copies the poster design for the 2008 film Gomorrah directed by Procacci, which had Scorcese's name attached to it for promotional purposes.
Tumblr user losermo then replied to the post with another user's comment reading, "this idiot hasn't seen goncharov," and it was how it originally went viral. Despite this, the post remained a sleeper hit well until October 2022, when Tumblr user dobsuffrage took it upon themselves to investigate the origins of the label, discovering the Gomorrah poster. And then, after on November 18th, Tumblr user beelzebub posted a fan-made (but of Scorsese-worthy-quality) poster for the film, the Goncharov fandom took over Tumblr in a matter of days.
Who Are The Main Characters In Goncharov?
If you want to learn more about Goncharov, Andrey, Katya and other Goncharov characters , you should definitely read this master post which perfectly summarizes the fan fiction written so far.
![Goncharov Lore ("Gonchlore" if you will) Masterpost Note: this is regarding the lore made up by tumblr collaboratively about a fake Martin Scorsese film. See the post that started it all and fake poster. 1. Goncharov was released in 1973. It was written by Matteo JWHJ 0715 and directed (?) and/or possibly co-written by Martin Scorsese. Scorsese's big name helped popularize the film, but as a result JWHJ 0715's significant contribution is often overlooked 2. Goncharov was forgotten and was actually difficult to acquire for many years. This may have been due to corporations hoarding rights and access, the actually mafia targeting distribution of the film, other factors, or a combination of these. This led to pirating of the film, which allegedly led to pirating discourse surrounding the film 3. There are talks of a Goncharov II or remake 4. Goncharov is a mafia boss in Naples of Russian origin. His wife/fiancée is named Katya, also of Russian origin. Goncharov may or may not have fled Russia, and may or may not have been pursued by someone trying to get him back to Russia, possibly to face legal justice. One such person trying to do this could be Valery Michailov 5. Valery Michailov in Katya's sister. He may resent Goncharov due to his relationship with his sister and due to Goncharov being wanted by the Russian government. He is somewhat patriotic, possibly a former government worker or soldier. 6. Katya's last name is either Michailova or Goncharova (although possibly with the wrong suffix). Her relationship with Goncharov is strained, tense, and possibly loveless. She ends up betraying him in the end. This is often seen as a subversion on the typical tropes for women in mafia movies. 7. At some point, Katya is on a bridge with Goncharov. At some point, Katya points a gun at Goncharov. At some point, Katya is injured on a boat/in a boathouse. 8. Katya is amicable with someone named Sofia, who has brown hair. She also has subtextual homoerotic tension with her 9. Sofia may be working class/poorer than many of the other characters are. 10. Goncharov has subtextual homoerotic tension with someone named Andrey. Andrey is Goncharov's old friend/best friend/nemesis/enemy/competitor. There is at least one instance of one of them trying to kill the other. 11. Ice pick Joe is played by John Cazale, making this his 6th movie. He has a famous 10 minute scene with Katya, and at some point dies, also possibly at the hands of Katya. 12. Mario Ambrosini works with Goncharov, possibly as a lackey or number two. At some point in the middle of the story, he betrays Goncharov and Goncharov tells him that he "never wants to see [Mario] again". It is unclear what happens to him after that. Mario also has a relationship with Andrey that some have described as "fascinating". It is unclear how. 13. There is a clock motif in Goncharov, and a general theme regarding "running out of time" before death. There are a few characters who seem at the very least subconsciously aware of the fact that they have little time until their death. The film also deals with the theme of fate, of death and tragedy being and inevitable thing for these characters. 14. Goncharov dies at the end of the movie, due to someone's betrayal. 15. Goncharov (1973) was heavily influenced by the American Cold War propaganda of the time. Some argue that it plays right into the stereotypes of Russians, others say it is a clever subversion of the propaganda and stereotypes of the time. Feel free to add more/expand/add alternative information!](https://i.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/newsfeed/002/482/172/77e.jpg "Goncharov Lore Masterpost by tsscat")
Was Goncharov a Real Person?
Unless you're talking about Russian novelist Ivan Goncharov, then no, there was no Russian-born mafiosi by that name. Even more so, Goncharov isn't even a real movie character (so far).
For the full history of Goncharov be sure to check out our entry for more information.
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