You Can See Everything Review: Brilliantly Creative Fielder Doc Shines Personal Light On Elizabeth Holmes
Well-known parody filmmaker Nathan Fielder (The Curse, Nathan For You) returns with his most in-depth project yet, an almost three-hour documentary about the 30 days before infamous Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes goes to prison.
Synopsis:
"Thirty-four days before she’s sent to prison, notorious Silicon Valley founder Elizabeth Holmes invites a skeptical film crew to document her every move. What begins as an intimate portrait of an enigmatic felon becomes a mind-bending three-year journey into the abyss."
Editor's Note: There are two very prominent actors who come into the documentary towards the end and I've spoiler marked them above. I went into this not knowing, so I think most would appreciate having that experience as well, but I've linked to their Letterboxd profiles if you are curious!
Release Date:
In Theaters Now
Intimate Look At Widely Public Figures
It's hard to really put into words what You Can See Everything acheives from a filmmaking standpoint. The best way to put it would be that it's the most intimate look you'll ever get at two people that are incredibly notorious public figures. When I say that this crew gets all-access into her life, it really is that. They are following her every move and even move into her house for the second half of the 30 days. This allows for not only some crazy conversations about the controversial figure that Holmes is, but also a certain behind-the-scenes feel to both casual and serious moments. I was left with my jaw dropped basically from the beginning because of how theatrical the entire thing felt. It's almost insane to imagine that not only is Holmes a real human being, but also someone who at one point had billion dollar investors convinced that she was the next tech giant. Her perspective on everything is almost baffling and humorous, making the entire documentary feel theatrical in so many ways. The intense score truly does make it feel like there is something monumental happening in these scenes that are really just conversations when you strip all the background noise down.
One surprising thing for me in this film, as someone who had very little knowledge of Holmes and the controversy going into this, was the amount of inclusion for the people around her. The main focus would be her current husband, who is absolutely not painted in a great light from the start. The filmmakers do a great job of subtly showing his manipulation from the beginning and then by the end, it continues to get worse than you could ever imagine. There's also Holmes' mother and father, who have a very small role in the documentary and that seems by choice. I say this because there are multiple scenes where the father is explaining his perspective on things, but is almost censored by the husband. It makes it so there is a really eerie feel, like there's some deeper storytelling here that just can't be achieved. These filmmakers get as close as you possibly could though and really help offer a look into all parts of her life.
Fielder Wildly Prods at The Truth
Lance Oppenheim (Primetime) and Nathan Fielder co-directed on this project, but Fielder is really a huge part of it with him being the interviewer for the whole length of it. Fielder is largely known for his comedic bits, both in his reality television and in real life. This puts him out of his element completley, having to be the voice of reason in this world of insanity. From the beginning he is taking a slow approach to this situation, warming up to Holmes' family and even agreeing to stay in their house. This was another stroke of genius in a long line of them for this film, as his approach was able to yield more results then could be expected. If he had gone super aggressive at Holmes from the beginning, it's almost a guarantee the family would become more reserved and maybe even cancel the camera crew entirely. But Fielder's style of questioning allows him to slowly creep closer to the truth, even becoming close to Holmes herself after she goes to prison.
Some of those comedic bits still come out, but by the end there's no character - this is Fielder at his most vunerable. Not only does he mention many personal things that have happened to him throughout the gap of time in the documentary, but he also admits that his perspective on Holmes has slowly changed throughout the time in knowing her. Fielder almost has a cinematic character arc that we watch in real time - his thoughts in 2023 are completley shifted and twisted by the end. It really does make Fielder the POV of the audience - where even though he's accquired all this access, he's still baffled at what to think of all these people. Fielder's perspective in this is essential to the success of the film and he has to somehow recieve recognition for that feat.
Bold Third Act Swings Elevate Everything
I'm not ashamed to admit that when I saw the trailer and early reactions to this, I was wildly confused. How could a documentary compete for Best Picture and more importantly, how could it keep me engaged for three whole hours? The answer to that question arrives shortly after Holmes heads to prison. To that point the movie is still incredible and you can see all my comments above as proof of that, but in the moment I remember wondering where we would go from here. The husband was still around to answer questions, but could that keep us engaged for the rest of the film and elevate this to legendary status? The film takes that concern and takes it in a direction that is probably the single most creative decision I've ever seen in a film (at the very least in this past decade).
Once Holmes is in prison, Fielder and his crew are unable to record any conversations they may have with her. There's also plenty of moments that happened in the production of the documentary that Fielder wants to explain, but can't quite find the vacuum to do it. What they do next is bring in two very prominent actors to recreate these scenes with Fielder himself, painting a complete picture for the audience. This was not only incredibly engaging because of the actors they chose, but also just because it feels like such an elevation to an already interesting documentary. It provides clarity, but also changes the entire narrative of the film. The actress playing Holmes also finds it in herself to challenge both Fielder and Holmes' husband, offering an necessary perspective when Fielder's mind starts to shift in unexpected directions. In my opinion she deserves whatever awards she is eligible for, not only for the re-enactment but her vital involevent in the documented moments. Her appearance shifts the narrative entirely and again, it takes this up a level to become one of the more legendary projects in recent memory.
Runtime Flys By
I mentioned earlier that I went into this slightly concerned about the runtime, simply because I really didn't see how they could fill all that time. I'm happy to say they make every minute important all the way to the very end. That's partly because the decision they make in the third act, part Fielder/Oppenheim, part source material and just so many other things that allow this project to fly by. To be honest I could have watched 3 more hours of Fielder prodding at the truth, especially because of the way the gears are turning in his head in the final sequence. This movie completely grasped me and it's one of those beautiful theater experiences where you just get lost in it. Everyone in my theater was completely glued to the narrative, from the humorous moments to the jaw dropping revelations.
I also wanted to take this section to reaffirm the idea that if this is eligible, it should be nominated in every possible place and maybe even have a case to win. Although this is a documentary in every sense of the word, the decisions they make elevate it to a piece of media that is just hard to even describe. The brilliant mind of Fielder is clearly all over this and it's hard to imagine anyone could have cooked up a better product. Oppenheim's direction is haunting and really does place us in everyone's headspace. As I mentioned, the actress who plays Holmes is a complete standout as always (and also long overdue for awards recognition). The film is as creative as anything I've ever seen and when a movie makes me think that way, it should be up for any awards possible.
Final Thoughts
At the end of the day, this film is something you really just need to see to truly understand. I'm sure these buzzwords and explanations I'm using seem exaggerated, but I can almost guarantee you'll be as gripped as I was leaving that theater. This is clearly one of the best films of the year and will be one I'll continue to revisit for a long time.
Rating: 5/5 Stars
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