'Band Aid' A Review

Band Aid is a romantic comedy/drama about a struggling married couple who channel their fights into songs and start a band. Anna(Zoe Lister-Jones) and Adam(Adam Pally) both work dead-end jobs and wrestle with having meaning in their lives and marriage in the wake of failed dreams and a miscarriage. Per the tacit recommendation of their therapist they start a band with their eccentric neighbor Dave(Fred Armisen) and begin to make some tentative progress as a couple and as individuals.

Lister-Jones, also the writer/director, gives a great performance emotional and funny, confident and authentic. Pally doesn't have the depth of his co-star but he does well and his lack is made up for in the magnetic chemistry they share. Armisen although certainly quirky is at his most reserved and plays a pleasant foil to the couple. The supporting cast all do well but the majority of the screen time and the story is, justly, taken up by the marriage at it's center. We get to know them intimately and even if we can't relate explicitly the experiences and feelings conveyed are universal.

A wonderful score is augmented by the actual songs the couple plays you only wish there was more of them because they're so good. The various production elements all blend harmoniously to show a more lived-in intimate LA that most films tend to ignore. The personal aspect of the film is heightened by the various homes and coffee shops it inhabits.

An incredibly compelling comedy about pain, purpose, and love.

Don't Miss It.