How did TickTock users diversify an NSFW Euro art film into the Netflix Top 10?

In February, Netflix began displaying the top 10 lists daily on its user interface to show the maximum number of streaming numbers on film and television shows. Although the feature does not include the exact number, it does give a glimpse of what is being seen on Netflix, which historically holds close to its data book.

Although the rankings usually consist of a combination of new releases and content licensed on the platform, a particularly odd film appeared at number 5 on the list of top 10 movies on June 24 and has remained in the rankings ever since: 2015’s love art film “Love.” Directed by Argentine filmmaker Gaspar No, who has made other films with explicit content such as “Immutable” and “Climax”, the film examines how the relationship between two young men changes when they invite a third person to bed.

“Love” has been available on streamers since 2017. However, it has enjoyed a new surge in popularity due to the viral challenge among Tiktok users to watch the first scene and record their reactions. The film opens with an uninterrupted sex scene between the two main actors, one of its entire runtime.

The incident began with a video uploaded by user Bella_Shie, who recommended the film out of the popularity of the new erotic Polish drama “355 Days”, which also attracted a huge audience on Netflix, ranking it in the top ten movies since June. “If you’ve watched 355 days and you like it, watch ‘Love’ on Netflix and use this word to record yourself at the beginning. I want to say very early. Play and record yourself and let’s see your reaction,” he said in the video. Says.

“Every teenager I can think of has seen it [365 Days] And we’ve fallen in love with all sorts of main characters, “said one of the hundreds of respondents who recorded the reaction.” It brings us to a movie called ‘Love …’ ” That’s how it started with 365 days. “

While many “355 Days” viewers are now watching “Love”, it’s likely that Netflix’s algorithms are increasingly suggesting the film to those who have seen the former to suggest the film individually outside of the TickTack Challenge.

“My friend sent me a link to the challenge and told me I should do it,” said Stephanie Truco, another TickTock user. “It simply came to our notice then. And I didn’t think it was going to be something, like when I did the challenge I was thinking ‘how bad can this be? Is it being murdered? ‘I don’t know. I didn’t think it would have any shock value and when I turned it on I was like, “Oh my God, yeah, it’s a really big shock value.”

Both Truco and Sul’s response videos have garnered thousands of views, such as those of Christopher Olsen and his partner Ian Page, who went one step further than a visual response by making their own vocal comments on the opening scene. Olsen expressed surprise that the film was featured in the top ten of the streamer considering the clear content of the film.

Olsen said, “You think just about any top 10 movie will click because it’s a good indicator of whether it’s popular or good.” You’re not really getting anything random. You’re just watching this cool scene of lovers enjoying each other and it’s over when the guy is finished what they show. So you can’t really get anything out of your imagination … It’s kind of crazy because I’m wondering if my dad is pressing it. ‘Oh what love? Is it in the top ten? ‘”

However, it is noteworthy that none of the users interviewed for the piece have finished watching the entire movie, suggesting that the film has reached the first ten even though many viewers are only gripped with the film for the first few moments. In January, Netflix announced that the streamer counts only two minutes of streaming as a scene.

“The whole movie is sexual, so I couldn’t finish it because I felt so bad,” Sul said.

“I watched it for about an hour and it progressed very slowly,” Truco said. “[It’s] Like two and a half hours long, just lots and lots of flashbacks and stuff in the back. It became a bit annoying for me. “

“We were asked to watch the whole movie so we could give a full response after that,” Olsen said. “I scrolled about what the rest of the movie looks like. The first scene is really just scratching the surface of what we’re going to do … we need to do a full review, but from there it only grows. ”