DJ Screw: The Untold Story

DJ Screw: The Untold Story

(Oarfin)

Robert Davis, aka DJ Screw, left as enormous an imprint on Texas rap as anyone ever has or possibly ever will. By "chopping and screwing" pre-existing songs, which basically entailed dramatically slowing tempos and repeating selected phrases and drum kicks, Screw created his own subgenre of a hip-hop that specifically catered to the codeine-drenched streets of his own Southwest Houston. While everyone seems to think that Screw died from a drug overdose in 2000, DJ Screw: The Untold Story points to recurring heart problems, in addition to the prospect that Screw just might have worked himself to death. Countless interviews with his family and Screwed Up Click cohorts reveal the sheer amount of effort that Screw put into producing and selling thousands upon thousands of his now-legendary "grey tapes" from the front gate of his own home. Recounting sessions that saw Lil' Keke and the late Fat Pat pushing freestyle rhymes into uncharted stratospheres, the DVD formulates a collective reverence for Screw as not just a conceptual pioneer but also a community leader. While the volume level is inconsistent over the course of the 90-plus-minute documentary, insights offered by Nik-Nak, C-Note, Lil' Flip, Big Pokey, Z-Ro, Trae, and the late Hawk provide enough valuable content to justify constant remote-control adjustments.