The documentary created a stir at the Telluride Film Festival, with its screening last weekend drawing a large audience, according to Variety. Producers had kept the project under wraps for three years. During the event, audience members' phones were sealed, and security personnel monitored the theater to prevent any leaks of the content.

Teaser for "You Can See Everything," which garnered nearly 6 million views on YouTube, will premiere in October in the US. Video: A24

The film, directed by Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim, focuses on Elizabeth Holmes, the founder of Theranos. This blood testing company was once valued at billions of USD before Holmes's fraud conviction. Holmes initially invited Fielder and Oppenheim to document her life for 34 days before she began her prison sentence. What started as a portrait of an entrepreneur evolved into a three-year project, with the crew continuing to film her life post-incarceration. A24 describes the project as a journey "delving into the abyss."

The film became a major talking point at the festival, currently holding a score of 94 on Metacritic. Critics lauded the content for not just recounting the Theranos fraud, but for its focus on observing how Elizabeth Holmes narrates her own story. Director Nathan Fielder directly posed questions, often expressing skepticism about Holmes's explanations.

RogerEbert awarded the film 4/4 stars, noting its constantly shifting narrative that poses the question: "What is the truth, and what is the protagonist merely portraying?" The Hollywood Reporter observed that the film's progression becomes increasingly unpredictable towards its conclusion. The crew's extended period of documenting Holmes's life allowed the film to reveal details and situations previously unseen in other works about the Theranos scandal.

IndieWire remarked that while the film evokes unease, it also features numerous moments that elicit laughter from the audience. Fielder, known for his signature style of placing subjects in staged scenarios to observe their reactions, continues this approach in the documentary.

While "You Can See Everything" diverges from traditional investigative documentaries, its blend of comedic, performance, and reality television elements might pose a challenge for some members of the Oscar documentary branch. The film's degree of staging blurs the lines between documentary and fiction, directly influencing its awards strategy. Variety reports that A24 aims to position "You Can See Everything" as the first documentary to compete for Best Picture, rather than solely focusing on a documentary-specific category.

Pre-Oscar award races, including the Gotham Awards, IDA Documentary Awards, Critics Choice Documentary Awards, Cinema Eye Honors, and the Directors Guild of America Award for documentaries, could help the film gain traction before the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announces its shortlist.

Elizabeth Holmes during an interview in 2015 before her arrest. Photo: CNBC

Elizabeth Holmes, 42, studied chemical engineering at Stanford University starting in 2001. By 2004, she dropped out to establish Theranos, a startup aiming to revolutionize the blood testing industry. Holmes claimed her company's proprietary device could conduct numerous tests from just a few drops of blood. This innovation propelled her to prominence in Silicon Valley. In 2014, Theranos was valued at approximately 9 billion USD, making Holmes, who owned about half the company, one of the wealthiest self-made female billionaires in the US.

However, Theranos's success rapidly unraveled following a series of investigations by the Wall Street Journal in 2015. Journalist John Carreyrou uncovered that the company relied on machines from other manufacturers for the majority of its tests. Consequently, Theranos lost key partners, including Walgreens, and ultimately dissolved in late 2018.

In 2018, Holmes faced indictment on charges of defrauding investors and patients. A jury convicted her in January 2022, leading to an 11-year and 3-month prison sentence. Holmes commenced her incarceration at a federal prison in Texas in May 2023. In January, she sought a pardon and early release from President Donald Trump, but the White House has yet to comment on the request.

Prior to the release of "You Can See Everything," the Theranos and Holmes story had been extensively covered. Alex Gibney's documentary "The Inventor: Out for Blood in Silicon Valley" premiered in 2019. Hulu's series "The Dropout" later earned Amanda Seyfried an Emmy for her portrayal of the female billionaire. A feature film project, slated to star Jennifer Lawrence and be directed by Adam McKay, was developed but ultimately did not proceed.

Cat Tien (Source: Variety, Hollywood Reporter)