CRITICS' PICKS.

FILM

Breaking up is hard to do: Music, love and misery are neatly intertwined in ``High Fidelity,'' a quirky comedy about a record store owner who tries to figure out why girlfriends seem to disappear faster than Bobby Fuller albums at a garage sale.

Rob (John Cusack) just can't seem to get over Laura (Iben Hjejle), who has dropped him in favor of a pony-tailed geek (Tim Robbins) who's fond of spouting new age aphorisms.

After Laura makes the final cut on Rob's top-five list of painful breakups, the aging music nut begins tracking down the other four to see why he seems doomed to be rejected again and again.

Cusack and his writing partners do a good job bringing Brit author Nick Hornsby's wry 1995 novel to the screen. If you've read the book, the move to Chicago from London doesn't detract from the story - or the humor.

And the soundtrack's not bad, either.

- Fred Shuster

STAGE

Water, water everywhere: It's not insulting to say that ``Metamorphoses,'' Mary Zimmerman's compelling and beautiful new stage adaptation of Ovid's mythical stories, is a play that's all wet. What else would you expect from a show that takes place in a rectangular reflecting pool? Yes, water is the Chicago-based director's medium of choice in depicting these classic Greco-Roman morality tales, most of which deal with love's transfiguring power. In a way, water also is the play's message, a multipurpose metaphor for the emotional currents that sway, nourish and occasionally swamp our lives. Zimmerman's unique aesthetic vision colors the Mark Taper Forum's production of ``Metamorphoses,'' and her rich appreciation for the sound and shape of language (both new and old) is shared by the versatile, athletic acting company. You'll be startled at what ancient truths they haul up from the depths. Tickets for the show, running through May 21, are $29 to $42. Call [phone].

- Reed Johnson

MUSIC

Sol at CSUN: Rich vocal harmonies and Afro-Latin rhythms meet in Sol y Canto, an award-winning group recognized for its poetic lyrics and fiery rhythms.

Winners of Boston magazine's Best of Boston award in the Latin-rhythms category and a Boston Music Award for outstanding Latin act, the band features talented multi-instrumentalists performing Afro-Latin material.

Sol y Canto appears Saturday at the Grand Salon at the California State University, Northridge, student union.

Built around Brian Amador's Spanish guitar and Latin diva Rosi Amador's sultry vocals, Sol y Canto's repertoire consists of tender ballads and uptempo numbers that draw upon traditional Latin rhythms.

The band, which has performed at the Kennedy Center, the White House and the Philadelphia Art Museum, among other venues, has released three albums since 1994.

The Grand Salon is at 18111 Nordhoff St., Northridge. Show time is 8 p.m. and tickets are $15 for the general public, $12 for seniors, $10 for children and non-CSUN students, and $5 for CSUN students. Information: [phone].

- Fred Shuster

TELEVISION

Classics: Rod Steiger helps host a mini-festival of his films on Turner Classic Movies (TCM) tonight with a fascinating interview with Robert Osborne. The Oscar-winning actor is both poignant and whimsical; he remembers threatening his mother in a flophouse so she would sign a release allowing him into the Navy at age 16 and confesses his passion for singing despite a tin ear. Tonight's films include ``No Way to Treat a Lady'' (1968), a romantic black comedy in which he plays a literal ladykiller; ``The Harder They Fall'' (1956), co-starring Humphrey Bogart (in his last film), exposing the ugly underbelly of pro boxing; and ``Jubal'' (1956), saddling up for a western incarnation of ``Othello.''

On TNT, the rock world lifts a glass to pop classicist Joni Mitchell as she drinks in the kudos in ``An All-Star Tribute to Joni Mitchell.'' Elton John, Shawn Colvin, Richard Thompson, Mary Chapin Carpenter, k.d. lang, Chaka Khan, Wynonna Judd and others perform her songs, and Hillary Clinton reveals that Mitchell's song ``Chelsea Morning'' was the inspiration for her daughter's name. Feel the waves of love from the miles of aisles Sunday at 9 p.m.

- David Kronke

CAPTION(S):

4 photos

Photo:

(1) A record store owner tries to understand why women leave him in the romantic comedy ``High Fidelity.''

(2) The poems of Ovid come to life in ``Metamorphoses,'' at the Mark Taper Forum.

(3) Rosi and Brian Amador of Sol y Canto perform at Cal State Northridge on Saturday.

(4) Elton John and others perform in a tribute to Joni Mitchell, Sunday on TNT.