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Holmes and Fielder's Staring Contest in New Documentary
· Confirmed
In Short: The documentary, described as a provocative staring contest, raises questions about Holmes' manipulation skills and her emotional state.
In a new documentary, Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim probe Elizabeth Holmes about her life and the downfall of her company, Theranos, in the weeks before she reported to prison in May 2023.
Fielder, known for his TV pranks, invited Holmes to her rented beach house in Del Mar to hear her side of the story.
Holmes, who maintains her innocence despite being convicted of fraud, insists she has never told a lie in her adult life.
The documentary, described as a provocative staring contest, raises questions about Holmes' manipulation skills and her emotional state.
Fielder vacillates between being freaked out by Holmes' lack of emotion and pitying her, highlighting the complexity of their interaction.
The film, which began as an intimate attempt to document Holmes before her imprisonment, evolved into a more ambitious and thought-provoking project.
Holmes' vacuous gaze and her insistence on her innocence create a surreal and unsettling atmosphere.
Fielder and Oppenheim followed Holmes, her partner Billy Evans, and their two children in the weeks before Holmes reported to prison.
The documentary's power lies in the questions it raises about Holmes' true intentions and the nature of personal truth.
Fielder admits he's still trying to process what he felt in Holmes' presence, and the film leaves viewers pondering the value of personal truth.
The documentary premiered at the Telluride Film Festival and has earned rave reviews, with some suggesting it could contend in both best documentary and best picture races.
What this adds
The documentary's exploration of Holmes' manipulation skills and emotional state adds a new layer to the well-documented story of her fraud.
The film's evolution from an intimate portrait to a more ambitious project reflects the complexity of Holmes' character and the challenges of documenting her story.
Fielder's and Oppenheim's decision to follow Holmes and her family in the weeks before her imprisonment provides a unique and intimate look at her life.
The documentary's success at the Telluride Film Festival and the potential for it to contend in both best documentary and best picture races underscores its impact and uniqueness.
Background
Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim's documentary, "You Can See Everything," explores the mind of Elizabeth Holmes, the convicted fraudster and former Theranos CEO.
What's confirmed
- A good portion of Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim's movie could be classified as a provocative staring contest, as Fielder probes Holmes about her life and the demise of her company, Theranos, in the weeks before she reported to prison to serve an 11-year sentence in May 2023.
- It's one thing to be told someone is a master manipulator, as "The Inventor" and "The Dropout" plainly do.
- Ostensibly, Fielder and Oppenheim are trying to uncover the mysteries of Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes, who is currently serving an over 11-year federal prison sentence for fraud.
- Fielder, who appears on camera as a part of the documentary, speaks at length to both Holmes and Evans, who were raising their two children in San Diego before Holmes turned herself in to begin her 11-year sentence in 2023.
- In 2023, 34 days before reporting to a Texas prison to begin serving an 11-year sentence for conspiracy and fraud, the reclusive Holmes invited TV prankster Fielder to come to her rented beach house in Del Mar and hear her side of the story.
- First up is the breakout hit of Telluride, the audacious Elizabeth Holmes doc “You Can See Everything.” The film from Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim premiered as a “secret screening” at the Colorado festival and earned rave reviews and swift proclamations that it could contend in both best documentary and best picture races.
What's still developing
- At various points in A24's new documentary, "You Can See Everything," I vacillated between each of the above.
- The story of how Holmes went from being named the youngest self-made female billionaire by Forbes to being convicted of defrauding investors as the founder and CEO of the blood-testing startup Theranos is well documented.
- "I think it will actually help me understand."
- "I'm really curious to hear what everyone else thinks, and what they make of certain things," Fielder said.
- Elizabeth Holmes famously does not blink, whether she's pitching investors or, by her own admission, flirting with a guy.
- Then I'd quickly shift back to being freaked out, because what if pity was exactly the reaction that Holmes — a talented, convicted fraudster — was angling for?
- It's been over three years since their close encounter of the Holmesian kind, and Fielder said he's still trying to process what he felt in her presence.
- Thus, according to the X reactions, calling it a straightforward documentary might be a mistake.
- A documentary that evolves into something considerably more bizarre, ambitious, and thought-provoking than its premise initially suggests, the film may well be his most out-there project yet.
- At the scene’s very end, when after a couple of minutes of Holmes smiling and staring earnestly into the narrator’s eyes, with a shaky head that makes it appear as if she’s developed some kind of anxious palsy, it’s revealed that she’s extending her left leg well off the couch to rock her baby.
- After 34 days of filming, Holmes—who pleaded not guilty at trial and maintains she's innocent of defrauding investors— reported for prison on May 30, 2023.
- Fielder and Oppenheim admit they didn’t exactly know what they were embarking on when they first conceived the idea at a magic show.