You Can See Everything
The best-kept secret in Hollywood over the past few years, You Can See Everything also might be the film of the year — if not the decade.
Directed by Nathan Fielder (The Rehearsal) and Lance Oppenheim (Primetime), this brilliant pseudo documentary chronicles the final five weeks of disgraced Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes’ freedom before she spends 11 years in prison. Why would Holmes and her partner Billy Evans allow the famously inquisitive Fielder and a camera crew into their (San Diego rental) home during these remaining days? It’s a question that drives this engrossing three-hour adventure and makes one want to watch another three hours investigating it, after which definitive answers still likely won’t have been reached.
Speaking in a register noticeably higher than the baritone she used during her Silicon Valley days, Holmes freely engages with Fielder, listening to his probing questions with lots of nodding and a wide-eyed, open mouthed expression that resembles Chuck E. Cheese. Her unusual style is one of numerous signs of potential autism, which Fielder himself seemed to reveal he has during The Rehearsal’s second season, setting up a fascinating dynamic between two fascinating people.
Fielder, however, is able to maintain professionalism, play interrogator, and invent creative ways to try and get the truth from his subjects. But as he seeks clarity on Holmes and Evans, Fielder elicits largely unsatisfactory responses that raise a larger set of mysteries. What does this couple hope to gain from this experience? What’s their overall end game? And to what extent are Evans and Holmes manipulating Fielder — both individually and collectively?
While Holmes is already considered one of the world’s great liars, Evans is just as confounding. Flush with family money — the specifics are never disclosed, but his parents own multiple successful resorts in San Diego — he quickly becomes difficult to trust thanks to vague answers and controlling behavior. In turn, it’s tough to believe his claims that he didn’t know who Holmes was when they met and easy to question his motives, particularly as the partners attempt to acquire funding for Theranos 2.0 before Holmes heads to jail.
If it’s not already clear, You Can See Everything is far from a usual, by-the-book documentary, and further setting it apart is how well-made it is — and, in its own way, how well-acted and well-written. Fielder’s thoroughly researched questions are intelligently crafted, and though somewhat off-the-cuff, his quick-thinking setup for an exchange involving Abbott and Costello’s famous “Who’s on first?” routine proves especially illuminating and is a strong candidate for Scene of the Year. Furthermore, the film wouldn’t be nearly as successful without his dryly comedic performance which, while largely improvised, is nevertheless him acting.
Once Holmes goes to her Texas prison around the film’s halfway point, just how Fielder and Oppenheim will fill the back side of their feature becomes the project’s focal point. Evans seems the logical albeit unsavory choice, and while he gets plenty of screen time, Fielder concocts a far wittier solution to keep Holmes involved despite her inability to appear on camera.
This genius workaround in turn yields a host of additional questions surrounding the trustworthiness of documentary filmmaking and to what extent Fielder himself should be believed. Bereft of spoon-fed answers, numerous possibilities endure once the end credits roll, gifting audiences a rare opportunity for rich discussion that could very well You Can See Everything to awards season glory.
Grade: A. Rated R. Now playing at AMC River Hills 10, Carolina Cinemark, the Fine Arts Theatre, and Regal Biltmore Grande.
(Photo: A24)
