You Can See Everything (2026) | Can We Really Know a Person?
5 days ago
3 min read
You Can See Everything completely caught me off guard. I went to the theater expecting a documentary and realized I was watching a psychological thriller.
The film follows Elizabeth Holmes and her partner Billy Evans in their California rental home, just 34 days before she heads to prison for fraud and conspiracy. Elizabeth gives Nathan Fielder and his crew full access to her and her family’s life in hopes that we (the audience) will see the real Elizabeth, a woman who couldn’t possibly have committed the crimes she’s convicted of.
The Dumbest Thing
What a gutsy move on their part, I say! A decision that Billy Evans has now admitted was “dumbest thing” he’s ever done (Variety). Nathan Fielder is best known for his work docu-comedy series The Rehearsal, a show where he helps people practice upcoming big moments in their lives by rehearsing them first. He’s known for blurring the lines between reality and fiction. This theme arrives in the documentary as well.
I went to the theaters knowing very little about the movie or Elizabeth Holmes herself, although I had seen Hulu’s fictional series about her called The Drop Out (which I reviewed here). But this documentary is truly an original and wild ride. The film assaults your heart with disgust one moment and compassion the next, swerving in directions I could have never anticipated.
We’re given a front row to watch this convicted criminal do normal things, like feeding her baby and making breakfast and playing in the ocean. We’re even introduced to her parents who claim she’s the victim in all of this. And thus, a host of questions filtered through the theater, “What if we got it all wrong? What if she was falsely accused?” Or “What if she’s just that good at lying? Just an expert manipulative liar?”
Two Ideas to Consider
I walked away with two lingering ideas:
First, editing is everything in this documentary. Nathan lived in their guest house and filmed them for hours and hours. And yet, we just see a fraction of the footage in the film, and the deeper we go, the less clarity we get. There’s magic going on here, and I don’t know how he does it. But what I do know is that he’s crafted a story by his editing choices. It resulted in a brilliant film, but it’s important to remember that it’s crafted in his image.
Second, what does it really take to know the depths of a person? Can an all-access look into someone’s life reveal who they truly are? I think we can spend lots of time with a person and never know their true intentions or even their deeds behind doors if they want them hidden. As human beings, we make judgments–based on our experiences, we choose to trust or doubt. A finite person cannot scour the depths of another–only the infinite can.
Only God Knows Everything
David reminds us of this in Psalm 139.
O LORD, you have searched me and known me!
You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar.
You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways.
Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O LORD, you know it altogether.
You hem me in, behind and before, and lay your hand upon me. (ESV)
Part of what makes You Can See Everything so fun is you don’t see everything. You can see a lot – that’s for sure – but everything is the business of God. As viewers, we just peer through the clouds of mystery and that makes a great time at the theaters. It certainly will stir discussion.
For many reasons, I think Christians should see this film. Please note there’s language and a brief scene of nudity (which seems to make the point of the film’s title), but otherwise it’s a very human film.
While it’ll most likely stir indignation within you, I hope you also feel some compassion for Elizabeth and Billy. They desperately want our approval and some declaration that they are righteous in the face of their enemies. I hope they see that this documentary will not get that for them. I pray they look to Christ.
Finally, expect this documentary to sweep the Oscars and even change the way documentaries are filmed.
See it. Discuss it. And let me know what you think!
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Dane Bundy is president of Stage & Story and Director of Fine Arts at Regents School of Austin.
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