Who knew What the #$*! Do We Know!? would become a sleeper hit playing to sellout crowds?

Not Dan Harkins, even though the theater-chain owner saw the independent flick at the Sedona International Film Festival in March and was impressed enough to pick it up for a run at the Harkins Valley Art in downtown Tempe.

"We offered to play it and give it a shot," he said. "Most of the time (independent films) break even or flop."

At first glance, the film's subject matter - quantum mechanics and the nature of perception and reality - doesn't seem that it could captivate crowds. But What the #$*! Do We Know!? became an instant hit and has packed the 265-seat theater since opening April 23.

Even more impressively, the movie's success in the Valley opened the door for a national run, says Betsy Chasse, a writer, director and producer on the film.

"Arizona proved to the powers that be that this film does have legs," said Chasse, adding that the moviemakers are negotiating with three major distributors and three major theater chains.

"You can expect to see this film across the country between now and October."

The movie, called What the Bleep? for short, has been playing to sold-out houses in Oregon and Washington, where it was filmed. But the long lines in Arizona dashed the notion that the film's metaphysical themes wouldn't survive outside the "crunchy granola" Pacific Northwest.

The film's combination of science and religion, along with its contention that the power of thought can affect events, has generated a word-of-mouth buzz in Arizona. A cross between a drama and documentary, it stars Marlee Matlin as a divorced photographer suffering from depression. It also includes prominent physicists, neurologists, a molecular biologist, medical doctors and mystics.

The movie set successive house records at the Valley Art, drawing 3,000 patrons in its first week, 4,000 in its second and 5,000 in its third, Harkins said. The movie is projected to break 5,000 again in its fourth week, according to figures provided by Harkins.

Hundreds of people are being turned away on weekend evenings, and Harkins plans to hold it over for several more weeks.

The numbers don't compare with Hollywood blockbusters - Valley movie theaters sold nearly 194,000 tickets for Van Helsing during its opening week - but typical attendance for an art film in its first week is about 1,500, Harkins said. And the rising figures for What the Bleep? defy industry logic.

"Movies always drop after the first week," Harkins said. "The last time I saw a movie do more business (locally) in its fourth week than its first week was Titanic."

Harkins isn't doing any extra marketing efforts; word-of-mouth is driving the film's success, he said.

Bill Kamper of Tempe said that's what lured him in.

"A woman e-mailed us," he said. "She's a friend who is, I guess, a spiritualist, and recommended it highly. This is the second time I've seen it."

Kamper had a pad of paper and planned to take notes throughout the film.

Another repeat customer, Doug Hauser of Phoenix, brought his son, Jeff Hauser, 25, after seeing the film with his younger son.

"I know he's going to like it," the elder Hauser said.

Lorie Newell and her husband, Riki, drove up from Tucson to see the film.

"So many of our friends that live in Phoenix e-mailed us about the movie," she said. "It's right in line with everything we've studied about healing and vibration and intention. It explains how we're all one and interconnected, and how our thoughts affect each other."