Summary
In Birmingham, Alabama, the general manager for the venue greets Don and Tony. Inside, he tells them that the Christmas show is the biggest of the year. He shows him to a small utility closet off the kitchen, and as Don goes to put on his suit, he tells Tony to meet him at the dinner.
George and Oleg sit down at dinner with Tony, and Oleg orders three shots of vodka. "Last show, Cold War over, time for truce," he says. Tony tells the men that Don's dressing room is more like a broom closet, and says that he doesn't know how the musician puts up with it. Hearing this, Oleg tells Tony that six years ago, in 1956, Nat King Cole was the first black man to play at this venue, but on the night of the performance he was beaten up for playing white music. "You asked me once why Dr. Shirley does this. I tell you. Because genius is not enough. It takes courage to change people's hearts." Oleg says.
Don enters the dining room and speaks to a host about joining his group at their table, but the host tells him he cannot come in. Tony gets up to assist Don and tells the host that Don is the entertainment for the evening, but the host insists that he cannot dine there. The general manager comes up and confirms that club rules dictate that he cannot eat in the dining room. As Tony protests, people in the dining room start to take notice, looking up from their meals.
When the general manager offers to serve Don his meal in his "dressing room," Don refuses. The general manager recommends a restaurant down the street, and Tony encourages him to go there. "It's the last show, it's the bottom of the 9th, let's just get it over with, and we can go home and get away from these pricks," Tony whispers to Don, who looks defeated.
Don goes back to the general manager and tells him, "Either I eat in this room, or I'm not performing tonight." The general manager asks to speak to Tony alone in the hall, and pleads with him to "talk sense" to Don. "Just ask him to be reasonable," the general manager asks, but Tony wants him to make an exception. He then tells him that the Boston Celtics came down also, but they were forbidden from eating in the dining hall as well.
When the general manager tries to buy off Tony, Tony pushes him against the wall. Don stops him from doing anything else, and tells Tony that he'll play if he wants him to, knowing that if he doesn't, Tony will not get paid. "Let's get the fuck out of here," Tony says, and they leave. The general manager screams at them as they leave the venue.
They go to a black restaurant and bar, and the patrons are puzzled by the entrance of a black man and a tuxedo and his white companion. They sit down at the bar, where the bartender asks Tony if he's a cop. "Do I look Irish?" Tony says and she laughs. Don orders two whiskeys and the house specialty.
Over a chicken dinner, Tony says, "I like what you did back there, Doc. You stood up for yourself." When the bartender asks why Don is so dressed up, he deflects, but Tony tells her, "He's only the greatest piano player in the world." Hearing this, the bartender directs him towards a piano on the stage and tells him to play it. Before he begins playing, he takes a glass of whiskey off the piano, before starting to play a classical melody that silences the bar. He plays a very complex and furious classical song. When he finishes everyone cheers and applauds, as a group of musicians gather onstage around him.
The musicians play some blues music and Don joins in on the piano as people begin to dance. Outside afterwards, Don tells Tony that if they leave now they can make it to New York for Christmas Eve. Suddenly, Tony pulls out a gun and fires 2 shots in the air. Two men who were behind the car run away. "Don't ever flash your wad of cash in a bar," Tony says to Don, alluding to the fact that the men were planning to rob Don.
They drive back to New York, through the night, in rain that turns into snow. As Tony gets nervous about being able to get home safely, Don advises him to put his jade stone on the dashboard. Later that evening, a cop pulls them over. He approaches the car and informs them that the car's back tire is flat. Tony looks out and sees the cop is right and they both replace the tire. The cop wishes them a merry Christmas and sends them on their way. Tony wants to give up and find a hotel, but Don tells him to keep going for as long as he can.
At Tony's apartment, Dolores lays out food for the holiday as the family members all help out. The scene shifts and we see Don driving the car through the Bronx, while Tony sleeps in the backseat. They arrive at the apartment and Tony invites Don up to his apartment, but Don doesn't want to, getting back in the car.
In the midst of the chaos of dinner, Tony comes into the apartment and greets his family, kissing his wife.
Back at his empty apartment, Don dismisses Amit for the night. He looks at the jade stone, before putting it on a table nearby. One of Tony's brothers asks him if he's alright and Tony tells him he's just tired. The brother hands him his watch and asks for $75. When some other family members refer to Don using derogatory language and ask Tony how the trip was, Tony tells the brother not to call Don words.
There's a knock at the door and the man from the pawn shop comes in with his wife, saying Charlie invited him. As Tony goes to close the door, he finds Don standing there and gives him a hug. He brings Don in and introduces him to the family. They stare at Don in silence, before Charlie, one of the brothers, tell the others to make Don a place at the table. Dolores comes over and greets Don, who thanks her for sharing Tony with him. She hugs Don and whispers in his ear, "Thank you for helping him with the letters."
Analysis
It is Oleg who explains why Dr. Shirley travels to the South, in spite of the bigotry there. He tells a story of Nat King Cole being the first black man to play in the South, and the fact that he got assaulted at a venue for playing "white music." Tony is shocked as Oleg tells him, "Genius is not enough. It takes courage to change people's hearts." In Oleg's estimation, Don is trying not only to reveal his talents to the world, but to change people's perceptions and make a difference to improve race relations.
Throughout, the film exposes the hypocrisy of a society that wants to mine black culture for its artistic and entertainment value, but will not allow it to exist in the world on equal ground. Don is allowed to play the piano at the club in Birmingham, but he is relegated to a broom closet for a dressing room and forbidden from eating in the very room where he will play. This injustice is pointed, in that it is not only bigoted, but it reveals both a desire for Don's talent, and a disrespect for his status as a black man.
For all his politeness, Don is stubborn and does not back down when his principles are compromised. When the venue that he is playing at refuses to serve him dinner, he refuses their suggestions that he eat in his dressing room or that he go to a nearby restaurant. Instead, he insists that he be served in the dining room or else not perform. While he never adopts the outwardly angry disposition of the more brutish, Tony, his standards are firm and immovable, and his insistence to be treated with respect is formidable in the face of gross injustice.
The film often uses humor to diffuse even the most dramatic of scenarios. For instance, after Tony and Don storm out of the dining hall of the venue and take refuge at a black restaurant, Tony tells Don that he liked that he stood up for himself, before completely misquoting John F. Kennedy. In a moment of recognition, in which Tony is expressing his admiration for Don, his ignorance betrays him and he completely botches a reference. These moments happen throughout the film, in a way that prevents it from becoming too treacly or saccharine. Tony has learned a great deal on the trip, but his conversion does not necessarily make him any more articulate.
The film ends with the isolated Don going to Tony's apartment and joining his rambunctious Italian Christmas Eve. While the shock of seeing a black man enter the apartment leaves the family dumbfounded for a moment, Charlie, one of the brothers, soon orders everyone to make a space for Don and they hurry to make him feel at home. The final moment is one of mutual recognition between Dolores and Don, with Don thanking her for sharing Tony with him, and Dolores thanking him for helping Tony write the letters.
