Butler's Cinema Scene

Fred Armisen, Adam Pally, Zoe Lister-Jones

“BAND AID” My rating: B-

91 minutes | No MPAA rating

Communication between married couples is an eternal minefield.

You say too much. You say too little. You can’t take criticism.  You find too much enjoyment in dishing criticism.

For Anna (Zoe Lister-Jones) and Ben (Adam Pally), the miserable couple at the center of the comedy “Band Aid,” the answer to their misery is to start a band and pour all their issues into caustic but catchy pop tunes.

Turns out to be pretty good therapy.

Lister-Jones not only stars in “Band Aid,” but she wrote it, directs it and composed the funky/punky songs.  It is pretty much a one-woman show…and it pretty much rocks.

As the film begins Anna and Ben are engaged in  yet another ragfest.  They live lives of not-so-quiet desperation.

She was an award-winning writer in college; now she’s an Uber driver.  He’s supposed to be a graphic designer, but he spends all day playing video games.

They have knock-down-drag-outs about dirty dishes piling up in the sink.  About his grooming issues. And of course about their lack of physical intimacy. (“The sensation I get from sex and the one I get eating pizza are pretty much interchangeable now.”)

Adam Pally, Zoe Lister-Jones

Attending a birthday party for a friend’s toddler, they pass the time by picking up kiddie musical instruments and improvising a song. It feels pretty good.

Before long they’ve created a band with Ben on electric guitar and Anna on bass.

They recruit their semi-creepy next-door neighbor, Dave (Fred Armisen), to play drums. Up to this point they’ve assumed that Dave was some sort of creep who kept girls chained in his basement; they are now stunned to learn that he’s a recovering sex addict and the sponsor of a couple of gorgeous former exotic dancers who’ve just joined the program.

Pretty soon they’re hitting the open mic nights to sing ditties like “I Love You But I Don’t Wanna Fuck You.”

But here’s the thing.  Music is a turn on. For the first time in months they make love standing up in the garage where they rehearse.  Not even Ben getting his foot caught in a huge spring-loaded rat trap can throw a wet towel on their passion.

“A rat trap?” says the panting Anna. “Well, push through it.”

“Band Aid” does provide a bit of trauma in their recent history — a devastating miscarriage — but for the most part “Band Aid” is played for laughs.  Which is not to say it isn’t dead on in pinpointing some of the common irritations that drive couples crazy.

It’s bitterly funny and surprisingly musical. And for a first-time directing effort, it’s damn good.

| Robert W. Butler