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Tone problems mar 'Band Aid's' exploration of a troubled marriage
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Zoe Lister-Jones is the director of "Band Aid," an official selection of the U.S. Dramatic Competition at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival. - photo by Josh Terry
BAND AID 2 stars Zoe Lister-Jones, Adam Pally, Fred Armisen, Susie Essman, Hannah Simone, Ravi Patel; not rated, probable R for profanity, vulgarity, drug use, sexual content and nudity; Sundance Film Festival

Last years Sundance Film Festival featured Sing Street, a movie about a teenage boy who starts a band to impress a girl. This years festival features Band Aid, a movie about a struggling couple who start a band to save their marriage.

But the comparison doesnt go much further than that. Band Aid is a relationship movie that happens to include some music, rather than a music movie that happens to include a relationship.

Anna (Zoe Lister-Jones) and Ben (Adam Pally) are miserable. Anna is a failed writer trying to get by as an Uber driver, shuttling inattentive passengers around in her Prius. Ben is a freelance graphic designer who ignores emails from his few clients, choosing to spend his days lounging around half-dressed in a home that somehow he and Anna can still afford. They are witty but fight constantly, swear like sailors and get high before social gatherings to numb their anxiety.

In their defense, they are about a year removed from a traumatic event that isnt clarified until later in the film. But that doesnt make them any more pleasant to be around.

When counseling proves fruitless, a chance experience at a birthday party inspires Anna and Ben to form a band. The plan is to funnel their frustrations with each other into their music, Fleetwood Mac-style, with Ben on guitar and Anna on bass. After some initial hesitation, they recruit their weirdo neighbor Dave (Fred Armisen) a sex addict who lives with a pair of ex-strippers to bring his drums over and complete the act.

The setup has some potential, and the angst trio (named The Dirty Dishes after one of their recent fights) begins to soldier forward and create some original music. But often the process just manages to give the struggling couple additional excuses to blast each other, and their progress is equaled by their regression.

Lister-Jones, who also wrote and directed the film, focuses the narrative more on Anna and Bens relationship rather than the exploits of their fledgling band, and we gradually learn more and more about the context of their struggles in increasingly heavy scenes. Armisens oddball comic stylings are meant to offer some relief from the tension, but are portrayed in a way that clashes with the heavy back-and-forth between Anna and Ben, reinforcing the film's tonal inconsistencies.

For a movie about a garage band, Band Aid seems only passively interested in the joy of making music. Movies such as Almost Famous, The Commitments and the aforementioned Sing Street capture the energy of creating and performing music, even while their characters deal with turmoil. But Band Aid is much more preoccupied with exploring Anna and Bens marital dysfunction, using the music as a thin thread in the plot.

That being said, Band Aid does a good job of showing a couple struggling with some very real issues. Anna and Ben arent all that likable, in spite of their witty conversation, but they feel like genuine people, dealing with relatable problems.

At one point, Dave briefly quits the band after witnessing an especially awkward encounter between Anna and Ben at a band practice. Band Aid certainly has a unique, adult take on the sex, drugs and rock and roll philosophy, but too often, Lister-Joness film leaves the audience feeling like the third-wheel drummer.

Band Aid is not rated but would have a probable R rating for profanity, vulgarity, drug use, sexual content and nudity; running time: 91 minutes.
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New Medicare cards are in the mail and scammers are on the prowl
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The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has begun mailing new Medicare Health Insurance ID cards. The program no longer uses Social Security numbers to identify people. - photo by Lois M Collins
The federal government is beginning to send out new ID cards to the 58 million Americans who benefit from Medicare. But since many of the people who will receive them don't know they're coming or why, scammers are already gearing up to take advantage.

An AARP survey shows as many as three-fourths of Americans 65 and older have no idea the cards are coming, so some individuals may be duped with claims that they're supposed to pay a fee or provide personal information that will be used, instead, to defraud them.

The new cards are the first reissue in years, and the most striking part of the redesign is that the cards no longer carry the beneficiary's Social Security number. Congress mandated the removal of that number as an identifier for Medicare beneficiaries by next April. Instead, the card has a Medicare Beneficiary Identifier number, an 11-digit combination of numbers and letters.

The new Medicare cards are now being mailed out in batches, starting with the Eastern seaboard and moving west. Most Medicare beneficiaries will receive their cards over the next six months, as long as the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has their correct mailing address. Once the cards are in hand, people can share the new identification number with their health care providers. During a transition period, either card is valid.

The old cards, which used Social Security numbers as the personal identification number, should be destroyed.

AARP recently launched an education campaign to warn consumers about scams related to the new Medicare cards.

The membership organization's "Fraud Watch" consultant, Frank Abagnale reformed con man, scammer and the subject of the movie and book "Catch Me If You Can" tells senior citizens the only time they need to carry the actual Medicare card is to health care appointments. Otherwise, it should be left in a safe place. If they want to carry one in their wallet or purse, he says, make a copy and black out the first seven numbers.

Since the cards were announced, scammers have already:

  • Called seniors and asked for their bank account information so that money on their old card could be returned. There is no money on the old card and CMS never asks for personal information over the phone.
  • Offered to send the new card after Medicare beneficiaries pay a $25 fee to cover expenses related to the card. The card is free.
  • Said the card will be mailed out as soon as the older person verifies his or her Social Security number, mailing address and other personal information. CMS already knows the beneficiary's Social Security number and it's no longer being used in conjunction with health care.
AARP and the Federal Trade Commission will hold a free online seminar about the cards and the fraud attempts they have spawned on Thursday, April 19, at 7 p.m. EDT. Register at: www.aarp.org/FraudWebinar. CMS also offers a "frequently asked questions" guide to the new cards.

The AARP Fraud Watch Network says consumers can sign up for its Watchdog Alert emails that deliver breaking scam information, or call a free helpline at 877-908-3360 to speak with volunteers trained in fraud counseling. Abagnale also hosts a weekly podcast for AARP, called The Perfect Scam.
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