BY EVAN RANDO
If you can see everything, can you really see anything at all? This question has been circling my mind since I walked out of A24’s new documentary, “You Can See Everything,” directed by Nathan Fielder, director of The Rehearsal, and Lance Oppenheim, director of Primetime.
Synopsis
The three-hour-long docu-film shows footage from 2023, after Fielder and Oppenheim were invited into the home of former Theranos CEO and convicted fraudster Elizabeth Holmes and her current partner, Billy Evans. The documentarians were brought in by Holmes to capture an unfiltered and intimate look at her final 34 days before getting sent to prison.
In hopes of giving the public a complete picture of who Elizabeth Holmes and Billy Evans are, we see footage of the couple as they take care of their children, answer questions about Holmes’ infamous scandal, and spend their final days together as a family.
Fielder himself also plays a critical role in shaping the narrative of the documentary, as he appears in front of the camera for the entire runtime, somewhat uncommon for traditional documentary style filmmaking and making him more of a participating subject rather than a completely objective observer.
Review
I have never in my life seen anything like “You Can See Everything.” It’s a work like no other, taking the medium of documentary filmmaking and pushing it to the edges of its definition. This is in no way, shape, or form a traditional documentary, and no one should walk into this project with that expectation because you really can’t have any proper expectations with something like this.
On paper, “You Can See Everything” can appear pretty intimidating. Mixing the lengthy runtime and convoluted history of its titular subject with the preconceived notions of documentaries being rather boring. It’s clear to see why some may feel inclined to shy away from this, but if you brave these fears and give this film the chance it deserves I guarantee you will find your jaw falling below your feet on multiple occasions.
For those familiar with the work of Nathan Fielder, what I’m saying probably comes as no surprise. The 43-year-old filmmaker has made a brand off of running mind bending social experiments in both “The Rehearsal” and “Nathan For You,” two comedy series that are equally as awkward and cringe-inducing as they are funny.
However, this is Fielder operating in a way we have never seen before; as the more serious and focused subject matter allows him to use his calculated awkwardness as a tool, or even a weapon, within his questioning. This allows the ensuing interactions to create a twisted juxtaposition of emotions within the viewer, as the overwhelming desire to look away clashes with the subconscious need to see what’s on the screen.
This feeling never lets up throughout the entire runtime, even after the halfway mark of the movie when the film takes a turn in a completely different direction. I can’t get into specific details about what that direction is without revealing major spoilers, but I can reveal that this is undoubtedly a two-parter, with the first and second halves of the film being two different things, both equally maddening and unrelentingly compelling.
However, what I perhaps found most interesting is that, on either side of this film, Holmes herself is never really the true main subject. She really acts more as a catalyst to a much larger conversation. A conversation centered around truth and deceit and the volatile reality of stories, performances and narratives. This conversation forces all of the documentary’s subjects, and even the audience, to reflect on how they personally play a part in evoking these themes which lead us to begin to understand just how bizarre we, as human beings, really are.
The intense nature of this content is amplified even further through the overbearing camera work. The three-hour runtime is filled almost exclusively with extreme close-ups and shots that go on far longer than any conventional film would allow, giving the audience the chance to observe every little detail on these people’s faces, and this harkens back to the name of the film, “You Can See Everything.” The entire absurd nature of this project, from the access of the filmmakers to the clarity of the cameras, is meant to show quite literally everything.
But you can’t see everything. It doesn’t matter if you have the world’s best documentarian with the world’s best camera, it’s just not possible. The mere nature of film as a medium just doesn’t allow that, and Fielder and Oppenheim know this better than anyone. It’s that knowledge that allowed them to craft this masterpiece. “You Can See Everything” is what happens when the most unconventional filmmakers document the most unconventional subjects, and the product may just be the most unconventional film. Five stars.
