Windows Update XP SP2 Freezes at Installation

I think this is a bit different from alarming number of similar topics.
I have a Windows XP Pro computer that refuses to allow me to update any
of the updates it tells me I should install. Windows update will find
the needed updates, download them, but when I click Install Updates, I
get an Installing Updates dialog box telling me it is initializing, and
there it will sit forever.

If I cancel out of it, it will just hang. So I have to go into Task
Manager to quit the application. If I try the process over without
rebooting the computer, the Installing Updates dialog box tells me the
Updates were unable to be successfully installed. When I close the
dialog box, it suggests that the problem may be that "Automatic Updates
are currently installing updates." Alas, I've already turned off the
Automatic Updates feature....

Any suggestions?

Thanks!