Documentary objectivity is impossible

Filmmakers cannot be neutral observers. The sensibility behind the camera shapes what viewers see and think, even when not stating it directly.

Fielder and Oppenheim film Holmes

You Can See Everything, directed by Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim, debuted at the Telluride Film Festival. It chronicles the thirty four days before Elizabeth Holmes' incarceration.

Holmes' conviction and sentence

Holmes, founder of blood-testing technology company Theranos, was convicted of fraud in two thousand eighteen and sentenced to just over eleven years in federal prison, commencing in May two thousand twenty three.

Evans wanted Holmes humanised

Billy Evans, Holmes' partner, urged the filmmakers to make the documentary. He wanted the world to see Holmes as a devoted partner and mother, not the villainized figure she had become.

Holmes promises complete transparency

Holmes vowed to keep nothing hidden from the filmmakers. The film's title comes from this spoken promise, but the question remains whether she fulfilled it.

“You Can See Everything”

Fielder's performative questioning

Fielder appears on screen repeatedly, asking probing questions that catch Holmes in slippery half-truths. His theatrical reactions, widened eyes, furrowed brow, slack jaw, are performed for the audience.

Holmes' evasive self-invention

Holmes insists she cannot lie or deceive, speaking phrases like all I know is my truth while working to convince the filmmakers of her innocence. Evans frequently interjects to support her.

“All I know is my truth”

Fielder and Oppenheim's smirkiness

Both directors are known for making themselves and others look foolish. Their stultifying smirkiness dominates the first half, with Fielder from Nathan for You and The Rehearsal, Oppenheim from Primetime and Some Kind of Heaven.

The film shifts two years later

The second half picks up two years after Holmes went to prison.Fielder and Oppenheim lose access to their subject as Evans curtails contact, appearing less like a caring husband and more like an evil puppetmaster.

Seyfried stands in for Holmes

Amanda Seyfried, who played Holmes in the two thousand twenty two miniseries The Dropout, stands in for the disgraced entrepreneur and weighs in on her plight, becoming the film's saving grace.

Fielder's sympathies shift

As evidence mounts that Evans is a megalomaniac, Fielder grows concerned about Holmes. He questions whether she is a victim not just of public opinion but of the person closest to her.

Seyfried sees potential manipulation

Seyfried thinks Holmes may have been both manipulated and misjudged, convinced her company could disrupt healthcare. She is clear-eyed enough to see Fielder may be going overboard in his emotional attachment.

The film does not revolutionise documentary

You Can See Everything reinforces what distinguishes novelty from genius, mere cleverness from true depth. It feels like a product brought to market rather than an example of the documentarian's art.