Every 21 Seconds

I'm not one to write reviews, in fact this is the first one I've ever done, but I felt I had to for this movie. I saw Every 21 Seconds in Chicago while it was in theaters. I honestly hadn't heard of it (I was planning on watching Black Panther but I was late) Anyway, I thought the poster was very intriguing and it was about to start so I figured 'what the heck, why not'

It wasn't until the film started that I found out it was based on a true story. That was only the first surprise. I then found out that it was about a TBI survivor. This hit close to home as my sister is also a TBI survivor after a bad car accident. As the story progressed I couldn't take my eyes off the screen. The pacing was perfect, the characters were developed well and the performances were nothing short of amazing. In particular the lead actor, Shannon Brown, who played the TBI survivor. Again, it hit close to home. I saw so much of my sister in his genuine, honest and powerful portrayal of a TBI survivor. His angst, his sudden mood changes, going from happy and smiling to being unhinged in a matter of seconds. His confusion and panic, having to relearn simple tasks that most of us take for granted. It was exactly how my sister went through this living hell. Just a brilliant performance by Brown, I'm now a fan and will be looking for more of his movies.

The female lead, Kelly Theibaud, was also fantastic. She plays Brown's wife and main supporter. I could easily sympathize with her struggle. I could feel her pain and frustration. The chemistry between the two leads was palpable, so strong. These two brilliant actors were perfectly cast to lead the audience on this intense journey. The entire cast was strong, in addition to the leads, the main Dr played by Jim O'Heir was great. He found a way to give some much needed levity without compromising the intensity of the story.

The director and producers hit a home run here. Great portrayal of a true story and the film was cast perfectly. Other than one of the friends, there were no bad performances. Even the kids were wonderful!

So, I ended up not seeing Black Panther that day. Instead, after watching this, I immediately called my sister. I picked her up and we went back that same day to a later showing and we watched it together. She cried more times than I could count. At the end, she had tears of joy. She said this movie perfectly portrays what it's like to have a TBI. It's a great movie purely as movies go, but it's a must see for anyone that has a TBI or has a loved one who does. Thank you for making this movie!

As the Wife of a TBI survivor, I found this movie very believable. Brian Sweeney went through all the emotions my husband went through. The anger the depression and the mood swings are something we have dealt with for 38 years, but I would not trade if for the world because this journey has made us who we are today. Great low budget film they are right on point

I had know idea what TBI (traumatic brain injury) was. After seeing this moving story my eyes were opened to the truth.

This is based on the true story of a TBI survivor Brian Sweeney.

This film will take you through the depths of hell this man went through to try to regain back any semblance of his former life.

Shannon Brown's performance is amazing as he wraps himself into his portrayal of a TBI survivor. He is like Jekyll and Hyde in the modern day. To see the effects that a TBI has on his character is eye opening to say the least. You literally watch a passive, loving man, husband, and father transform before your eyes after as fights to recover from his injury.

If you are not crying by the end of this movie, you have ice water in your veins.

The cinematography is excellent. The rest of the supporting cast is amazing.

Kelly Theibaud, who plays the wife of Browns's character is so emotionally touching. You can see the despair on her face, and in her performance, as she watches her husband deal with the issues his injury as caused him.

The directing was top notch. Kuba Luczkiewicz did an amazing job. He definitely cultured the performances that made this movie grasp at your emotions.

If you have nothing better to do on a Saturday or Sunday night, watch this movie. You will not be sorry. You will also learn about TBI and how they can pull a man, and his family down to the brink of destruction. You will also learn that with unwavering love and commitment, you can perceiver and overcome.

I enjoy watching indies because there is an organic and purity to telling a story with a limited budget. We seem saturated with 100 million dollar superhero movies which can be entertaining in its own right, but its basically become just using a blank checkbook to get the latest technology in special fx. It's getting to the point where the entire film can be shot in front of a green screen, no thanks.

Every 21 Seconds is a perfect example of telling a great story with none of the smoke and mirrors. It centers around a brain injury survivor who defies all odds to not only survive, but thrive after his near death experience. I was initially drawn to this movie because I thought it was based on the true story of a man suffering from PTSD, but that is not at all what this was. Have you heard of a tbi? Yeah, me neither until I saw this film. tbi stands for traumatic brain injury and apparently its something that many people suffer from in our society. If you suffer one and you are lucky enough to survive you are often times stuck in a hell where you might look the same as you did before but you are not the same person at all. This film motivated me to research it some more and I was shocked to find out how common these types of injuries are from boxers, football players and armed forces veterans to regular day people like the guy this particular story is based on. It often times leads to depression, wild mood swings, memory loss and a buffet of other terrible side effects.

On to this film in particular. I was hooked immediately. The pace of the film keeps you invested, the performances keep you engaged and the fact that its based on a true story makes it all the more powerful. Shannon Brown is amazing as the main character. You cant help but laugh with him, cry with him and definitely pull for him as this intense story unfolds. A remarkable performance! His co star Kelly Thiebaud is also very powerful. She plays the main character's wife and she is anything but weak or a victim. Her portrayal of the devoted wife who will stop at nothing to help her husband is inspiring. Brown and Thiebaud are simply magnetic in this. A prime example of why I love indie filmmaking. These two stars took a great story and brought to life in a raw, unfiltered manner without the help of exotic locations or over the top special fx.

The film itself has a great pace to it. The cinematography is beautiful, the director navigated the ship perfectly, the score is brilliant. Again, no frills, just genuine story telling. I noticed one review where these filmmakers were actually mocked for having to work with a modest budget. I guess to someone shallow and un-artistic, it's a bad thing to be able to tell a great story without a big Hollywood budget. That same type of shallow critic is the reason there are 137 Avenger movies out there. I will applaud great storytelling and powerful performances achieved without the benefit of 100s of millions of dollars to dress it up and that is precisely what Every 21 Seconds is.

Not the best acting by the supporting actors but heartfelt story well done