An oddball blend of surprisingly lively scientific dissertations, playful 3D animation and visual effects and Marlee Matlin in a parallel fictional component, "What the #$*! Do We Know?" (the "#$*!" is officially pronounced "bleep"), serves up something of a metaphysical sampler platter. Financed by William Arntz, a successful creator and seller of computer software companies who also happens to be a devout Buddhist, and co-written by Arntz, director Mark Vicente and producer Betsy Chasse, the documentary provides entry level, risk-free enlightenment with a great deal of charm and invention. On paper, the promise of 14 leading scientists and mystics defining reality wouldn't exactly seem like a swell night at the movies, but the filmmakers manage to get their message across painlessly and even intriguingly thanks to a presentation that's big on those eye-catching effects and an accompanying irreverent tone that prevents it from taking itself too seriously.

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