New Documentary Blends Reality and Fiction in Portrait of Elizabeth Holmes

Nathan Fielder and collaborator Lance Oppenheim released "You Can See Everything," a film that combines conventional documentary footage with a later, more experimental segment to portray Elizabeth Holmes during her final month at home before her imprisonment. The first half, filmed before Holmes entered prison, follows her daily life with partner Billy Evans and their children. The second half, set two years later, relies on reenactments and narrative techniques rather than direct footage of Holmes.

The filmmakers present the project as a hybrid of fact and invention, encouraging viewers to question what can be verified. Holmes asserts that she has never lied, a claim the film examines through discussions of minor "white lies" and the interpretation of the word "can" in her statements about the capabilities of Theranos technology. Critics note that the film does not address several allegations presented at Holmes's trial, such as claims about military use of the technology and accusations of intimidation toward whistleblowers.

Fielder also explores the financial arrangements between the subjects and the production company A24, raising questions about what contractual agreements were signed. While the film’s style is described as “trippy” and deliberately ambiguous, some reviewers argue that omitting concrete evidence may create a misleading impression of Holmes’s actions.

Observers suggest that audiences familiar with investigative works like John Carreyrou’s Bad Blood and Alex Gibney’s documentary The Inventor may find the film’s blend of fact and fiction challenging, as it offers a nuanced but potentially incomplete portrait of a figure convicted of fraud.