All About E

In this loopy dramedy, the titular “E” (Mandahla Rose) is a gifted clarinetist who gave up a possible musical career—as well as abandoning her family and one true love, Trish (Julia Billington)—to become a celebrity DJ in a hot British nightclub owned by the creepy, thuggish Johnny Rock (Simon Bolton). The latter runs E's life with an iron fist, and when her sweet, gay manager, Matt (Brett Rogers), books E into a competing club, Johnny crushes that plan with veiled threats. So it's no wonder that after E accidentally ends up with a bag of Johnny's cash receipts from her stints at his venue, she feels no guilt about keeping the money. Johnny, in a lethal mood, thinks otherwise, forcing E and Matt to go on the run, and they end up on Trish's farm. Here, relationship dramas unfold while Johnny continues to follow E's trail. Writer-director Louise Wadley has a deft hand with the occasional action sequence (especially a climactic scene involving a plane), and the performances are solid (particularly by Bolton and Rogers), but this oddball film—built on a lightweight, silly premise—takes itself a bit too seriously, and strains credulity. Optional. (T. Keogh)