TODAY: The Meaning of LifeThe third annual...

TODAY: The Meaning of Life

The third annual “City of the Angels Film Festival” opens tonight at the Alex Theatre with a 50th-anniversary screening of Frank Capra’s “It’s a Wonderful Life.”

The theme for this year’s festival is the search for meaning in film. The Rev. Scott Young, festival co-chairman, says the films selected should prod people into thinking about the meaning of life.

“We were looking for movies that wouldn’t provide answers as much as pose questions,” Young said. “Our festival wants to explore the intersection between religion and film--the spiritual aspect of a secular product.”

“It’s a Wonderful Life” stars Jimmy Stewart as George Bailey, a man who is visited by an angel after attempting suicide on Christmas Eve. The angel shows Bailey what the world would have been like if he’d never been born. “ ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’ demonstrates the American dream of sorts,” Young said. “It shows the good parts and the bad parts.” A discussion will follow the screening.

Young said the festival grew out of an ongoing dialogue between people in the film industry and at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena. The theme for the first festival in 1994 was “Los Angeles: Dreams, Conflicts and Lifestyles” and featured the films “Grand Canyon” and “Chinatown,” among others. The 1995 festival centered on the quest for reconciliation and featured the films of Polish director Krzysztof Kieslowski.

The festival continues through Sunday at the Directors Guild of America Theater II in Hollywood. Other films scheduled include “Apocalypse Now,” “Babette’s Feast” and “The Player.”

* “It’s A Wonderful Life” at 7 p.m. tonight at the Alex Theatre, 215 N. Brand Blvd., Glendale. Tickets are $5-$7. Call (818) 304-3775.

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FRIDAY: Not Quite Opera

Frank Loesser’s musical “The Most Happy Fella” opens tonight at CSUN. While not as successful or popular as Loesser’s other hits--”Guys and Dolls” and “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying”--”The Most Happy Fella” opened on Broadway on May 3, 1956, and ran for 676 performances.

The show’s score includes “Standing on the Corner,” “Somebody, Somewhere,” and “Big D.” Loesser incorporated elements of opera into his show, which has more than 40 musical numbers while spoken dialogue was kept to a minimum. Loesser also wrote the libretto, adapted from a 1924 play, “They Knew What They Wanted.” Set in the Napa Valley, the story concerns a romance between a middle-aged grape grower and a young waitress.

The production is a collaboration between the theater and music departments under the direction of David W. Scott, the head of CSUN’s opera program.

* “The Most Happy Fella,” 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 5 p.m. Sunday; Campus Theatre, 18111 Nordhoff St., Northridge. Additional performances Oct. 23-27. Tickets are $7-$12. Call (818) 677-3093.

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MONDAY: Chamber Music

The Music Guild of Los Angeles opens its fifth season of chamber music at Pierce College on Monday with a concert by the Mendelssohn String Quartet. The ensemble has performed at Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center and London’s Wigmore Hall.

Formed in 1979, the ensemble serves as quartet-in-residence at New York’s Merkin Concert Hall and at the University of Delaware.

* Mendelssohn String Quartet, 8 p.m. Monday; Pierce College Performing Arts building’s Main Stage Theater, 6201 Winnetka Ave., Woodland Hills. $17-$22. Call (818) 719-6476.