[color:"orange"]It goes a third of the way checking the disc then closes.[/color]

Is there an error log in the Beyond Divinity folder?
Do you have a different optical drive you could try the CD in?

Can you tell if DirectX starts changing the resolution? The progress bar is not very accurate; on my system it usually shows 1/4 loaded for a bit, then 1/3 loaded, then it exits and the intro video starts.
In Windows Explorer, if you browse to the '..\Beyond Divinity\Static' folder, can you view the intro.mpg video? Do you have any video filters installed? At least the ReClock DirectShow Filter needs to be disabled to play the game videos.