In the early days of hiphop--the days of Grand Wizard Theodore, and Grand Mixer DXT--the DJ was at the center of the revolution. The DJ generated the important ideas, and dazzled the crowd with his turntable skills. It was possible to have a party without an MC, but impossible to have a party without a DJ.

Doug Pray, who directed the grunge documentary Hype!, wants to restore this early hiphop order ruined by the spectacular success of the rapper. He wants to return the DJ to the center, and make him the true hero of hiphop, the one who represents what is most holy: sacrifice. The DJs interviewed in Scratch (Jazzy Jay, DJ Premier, DJ Q-Bert, and so on) consistently express ethics that are defined by an almost Buddhist-like selflessness in the service of hiphop art. The MC is corrupt; the DJ is faithful.

But the DJ was displaced not only by the ambitious MC, but by advances in recording technology, like the sampler. Doug Pray doesn't get into this too deeply; he never explores the impact of digital technology on hiphop, and with good reason. If the DJ is to be recognized (indeed, worshipped) as the true hero of hiphop, then he cannot be seen as the victim of machines, but of greed. This gives hiphop history a neat moral order, and it shapes the documentary's narrative into a drama between the selfish MC (who sold his soul to the devil) and the selfless DJ (who toils patiently in the church of hiphop).

According to Pray, the church of hiphop is the record store, which is why one of Scratch's most powerful moments is when DJ Shadow is in the basement of a record store, among thousands of records, looking for rare breakbeats and reflecting on the evanescence of pop-music fame. "This room," he says, "is filled with broken dreams."

Whether you disagree or agree with Pray, Scratch is a must for hiphop lovers.