As soon as author Ben Mezrich knew his "Bringing Down the House: The Inside Story of Six M.I.T. Students Who Took Vegas for Millions" was heading to the big screen, he knew he'd eventually be heading to Las Vegas.

After all, while "you can always fake Vegas," Mezrich says, "it will never come close to the real thing."

Which explains why "The Untitled Blackjack Picture," based on his book, continues rolling on the Strip this week.

Producer-star Kevin Spacey (who also filmed 2000's "Pay It Forward" in Las Vegas) approached Mezrich about adapting his best seller when it was published in 2002.

And although the screen version has "more action" and "more sex" than the book did, "it looks really, really good," Mezrich says. (And that's not always the case in the transition from page to screen.)

"Bull" session: Las Vegas' resident bad boys of magic return to Action Sound Thursday to shoot promotional sequences for the fifth season of their Showtime series, "Penn & Teller: Bullshit!"

The duo has been taping introductions and interstitials (TV talk for transitional scenes) for the past two weeks. The show's longevity has surprised everyone from Showtime officials to the stars themselves, according to executive producer Mark Wolper.

"It's the little show that keeps on going," Wolper says, attributing its success to "a very, very loyal, small, cultish audience."

Local motion: The upcoming Cinemax series "Sin City Diaries" continues production, while editing gets underway on the initial half-hour episodes featuring Amber Smith as a high-roller concierge.

So far, cable officials have "watched the first dailies and (are) very happy with the progress and the look/feel of what they've seen," reports Jeffrey Pittle, who is producing the series with Media Underground colleague Paul Remo.

Wilkommen in Vegas: The German documentary "Viva Las Vegas" checks in for a two-week shoot focusing on Germans living and working in Glitter City, including Bellagio executive chef Wolfgang von Wieser, "Love" artist Nico Karsdorf and "O" performer Benedikt Negro.

Locations range from Hofbrauhaus to Hoover Dam, notes executive editor Christian Betz of Focus TV, which is producing the two-part documentary for Focus and Germany's Discovery Channel.

Reality roundup: Several reality-based TV projects continue their shoots, including Spike's "Ultimate Fighter" (which has about 2 1/2 weeks to go), MTV's "Taquita and Kaui" (expected in town through late March) and A&E's "Criss Angel: Mindfreak" (also in residence through March).

Carol Cling's Shooting Stars column appears Mondays. Contact her at 383-0272 or e-mail her at ccling@reviewjournal.com.