Rock The Bells is a documentary about a concert promoter who bites off more than he can chew while trying to put on a massive hip hop show featuring a ton of acts, the headliners being the reunited (he hopes… and has guaranteed) Wu Tang Clan.  I was lucky enough to be an executive producer on the movie, which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2006.

When I first heard of the film, the directors Casey Suchan and Denis Hennelly had already shot the footage and needed funds to finish post-production.  I was part of the team that got involved and raised the post-production budget.  And boy I’m glad I was.

It was a critical and fan favorite wherever it went and has an 83% Fresh rating on RottenTomatoes.  Not only that, but Casey and Dennis have been great friends to me since.

The movie itself is an intense ride.  Every time I watch it, I’m still sitting on the edge of my seat to see whether everything is going to work out or whether there is going to be a massive, bloody riot.  It’s intense.  And it’s a documentary, so you feel the real consequences as you see real fans pummeled or pass out from exhaustion.  It’s crazy.

But don’t take my word for it.  Here are a few of my favorite critic quotes on the doc:

“A flat-out stunner… High flying documentary at its finest.” – Kevin Williams, The Chicago Tribune

“Outright exhilarating.” – Premiere

“Wait to pee entertaining.” – Cinematical

And if you’re not sure you’d like it because you’re not into hip hop…

“A paean to indie ingenuity…appealing to devotees and the uninitiated alike.” – Variety

If you are into hip hop, you’ll certainly recognize Redman, Dilated Peoples, Sage Francis, MC Supernatural, and, of course, RZA, Ol’ Dirty Bastard, and the rest of the Wu Tang Clan.

You can get the DVD at Amazon or rent it from Netflix.