A Goodfellas parody video shows clips of DC rioters getting arrested. Goodfellas, directed by Martin Scorsese and starring Ray Liotta (Marriage Story) as Henry Hill, is a critically acclaimed crime drama detailing the rise and fall of Hill and his mob associates over the span of several decades. The film, adapted from the 1985 Nicholas Pileggi non-fiction novel, Wiseguy: Life in a Mafia Family, also starred the legendary Robert De Niro (Joker), Joe Pesci (Casino), and Lorraine Bracco (The Sopranos). Goodfellas would go on to be nominated for multiple Oscars that year, winning Pesci his first Academy Award in the Best Supporting Actor category.
The United States is still reeling from the attempted coup staged on January 6th at the U.S. Capitol building in DC, and the media has been flooded with continually emerging new information regarding those involved. The FBI has solicited tips from the public to aid in identifying the perpetrators as well as the TSA being pressured to place those individuals on the “No-Fly” list in order to restrict their domestic movements and help bring them to justice. Countless memes have emerged depicting the participants of the insurrection over the last week and have been shared all across social media.
One such meme was posted by Twitter user Carter Glascock, showcasing a video collection of insurgents being captured and detained after having been identified. It’s set in a parodied tone of Goodfellas, captioned with the heading - "As far back as I can remember, I've always wanted to be a patriot.", and features a Liotta/ Henry Hill type narration over the top of it, like that which was done throughout the classic movie. Here is the tweet and full video:
The stitched together clips are taken from various social media sites like Tik Tok as well as traditional news outlets like CNN. It makes hilarious references to Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, Proud Boys, and “Donnie”, and played over the song “Layla” by Derek & the Dominos, the same tune famously used for the Goodfellas film. The Liotta-esque voiceover takes the original iconic line of — “... We always called each other ‘Goodfellas’ ...” and turns it on its head, adding in a mocking — “Do him need a diapy change? Do him want his ba-ba?”
Although memes of this sort are done in jest and seemingly make light of the heinous acts committed on January 6th, they are actually beneficial and serve a purpose. Humor is used here to offer commentary over the ridiculous monstrosity of those who took part in the failed siege. Entertaining videos that manage to go viral (at the time of writing, this video has nearly 2 million views in just 2 days) result in the sharing of information to a wide range of people. And hopefully the use of a widely beloved film like Scorsese's Goodfellas is effective in helping to denounce the acts committed, ideally inspiring further discourse, and aiding in it never happening again.
Source: Carter Glascock