STORYLINE: Thirty-four days before she’s sent to prison, notorious Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes invites a skeptical film crew to document her every move. What begins as an intimate portrait becomes a mind-bending three-year journey.  (IMDb)

  In 2004, Fahrenheit 9/11 was the first main stream documentary about a sitting President, to be released in theaters.  The Oscar winning O.J, Made in America (2016) chronicled O. J. Simpson’s story. Citizen Four (2014) captured the tale of Edward Snowden.  Elaine Holmes is the subject of the documentary You Can See Everything.

  Manipulation is a hard part of any motion picture.  It creates untrustworthy and suspicious

characters.  A documentary such as 2022’s Mister Organ is a prime example. Side note about that film, it is the name of the subject, and has nothing to do with the horror genre. I highly recommend seeking it out.  Back to the point in hand.  You Can See Everything, is a documentary where the two central subjects, Elaine Holmes and her husband, appear to be textbook manipulators.

  The film is divided into two clear halves, before and after the start of Elane Holmes’ time in prison.  Through the eyes of filmmaker Nathan Fieldier viewers start to get some idea of who these two people are.

  The first half of the movie is a look at who Elaine Holmes is, as a person. As much as she and her husband want the film to be a fluff piece on them it never turns into one.  The filmmakers are always questioning who they are, what they did, and why they did it.  It seems the subjects never give a simple answer to basic questions.

  The second half of the documentary becomes a goose chase like film. It is trying to chase down answers to curiosities that have been raised through the course of production, and continue to be raised.

  You Can See Everything is simultaneously compelling and frustrating to watch.   It is compelling to watch how the characters interact with the world, and tell their side of the story.  It’s compelling to watch the events of the film play out.  It’s frustrating because of the manipulation that comes from the subjects of the film. However, that acts as the catalyst for the events of the film.

  The thing I found most unique about You Can See Everything were the moments of humor spread throughout the three hour runtime. I was not expecting this. I was awards the director of the movie has a comedy based show before making this film, but I did not expect humor to be carried forward, considering the content of the movie.  It worked well.

  You Can See Everything is a compelling and frustrating documentary, that is well worth the watch.

  Until next time, I will see you at the movies!