Films to Go in Different Directions : Cinema: UCI’s ‘Double Vision’ series will show 2 works from each movie maker who is spotlighted.

Besides the instantly recognizable smart jokes and paralyzing neuroses, what are the elements that link Woody Allen’s movies? How about Alfred Hitchcock--after his own sly cameos and all those oddly effective camera angles, what can you expect from the master of suspense?

A decent place to start for answers may be UC Irvine’s “Double Vision” spring film series, which begins tonight with Ridley Scott’s “Alien” and continues weekly through March 13. By screening two movies each from the libraries of some of the world’s great directors, the series asks audiences to explore questions about themes, content, technique and style.

Of course, the main goal of the UCI Film Society, the program’s sponsor, is simply enjoyment. But organizer Alice Parsons notes that there was “a conscious decision to offer movies that are fine examples (of a director’s) point of view (and those that) give insight into their development.”

Parsons, a longtime coordinator for the film society and its series, oversaw a group of students--Joshua Burns, Jonathon Fox, Lara Honrado, Fabian Marquez and Suman Perinpanathan--that chose the movies and will run the screenings. The students plan to introduce each offering, probably with a brief talk on the filmmaker’s vision.

“They are really into film and actually know much more about them than I do,” Parsons said. “Their knowledge should be valuable. Considering that and the quality of the films, I think this is one of the more interesting programs we’ve had.”

She added that the series tends to avoid a director’s more famous work in favor of the seldom seen and, in some cases, movies that aren’t available on video. You won’t see Allen’s “Annie Hall” or “Manhattan” here, nor Hitchcock’s “Psycho” or “Vertigo.”

The program does, however, open with “Alien,” probably Scott’s best-known work. The 1979 horror movie starring a salivating monster and a lean, mean Sigourney Weaver is contrasted with Scott’s “The Duellists,” which screens Feb. 14. Based on a Joseph Conrad story, “The Duel,” the 1977 film centers on a long-running feud between characters played by Harvey Keitel and Keith Carradine.

On Jan. 17, Luis Bunuel’s darkly erotic “Viridiana” will be shown. The 1961 movie about a novice nun forced to discover the passion around her will be followed Feb. 28 by “Nazarin,” Bunuel’s film (also released in 1961) focusing on a priest who is cast out of the church after aiding a hooker.

Hitchcock’s “Strangers on a Train” (1951) screens Jan. 24. His “The Trouble With Harry,” which came out in 1955 and features Shirley MacLaine in her first movie role, follows on March 6.

“Lolita,” Stanley Kubrick’s 1962 adaptation of Nabokov’s erotic novel, will be shown Jan. 31. Kubrick’s earlier “The Killing” (1956), co-written with crime novelist Jim Thompson and telling of a racetrack heist gone wrong, is slated for Feb. 21.

“Zelig,” Allen’s satiric look at a human chameleon who injects himself into the monumental events of his era, screens Feb. 7. The 1983 comedy is followed on March 13 by “Love and Death,” Allen’s 1975 movie set during the Napoleonic Wars.

“Alien” will be shown tonight at 7 and 9 at the UCI Student Center’s Crystal Cove Auditorium. All films will be shown at 7 and 9 p.m. except for the second screening of “Lolita,” which will be at 9:30 p.m. Tickets: $2 to $4. Information: (714) 856-6379.