In 1823, aged composer Antonio Salieri attempts suicide and is committed to a psychiatric hospital. He claims that he murdered Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Father Vogler, a young Catholic priest, encourages Salieri to confess his sins before God. After Vogler fails to recognize him, Salieri plays three old melodies to jog his memory. Vogler cannot recognize the first two (which Salieri wrote) but is relieved to recognize the third (Eine kleine Nachtmusik) at once. Salieri peevishly reveals that Mozart wrote it. Salieri begins his confession by saying he grew up hearing stories about the child prodigy Mozart. In his youth, Salieri was in love with music but was forbidden by his father to study the craft. Salieri proposed that if God made him a famous musician like Mozart, he would give God his faithfulness, chastity, and diligence. Salieri's father soon dies, which he interprets as a sign that God has accepted his vow. By 1774, Salieri became court composer to Holy Roman Emperor Joseph II in Vienna. However, he has enough taste to know that Emperor Joseph has no ear for music, though Salieri prides himself on the popularity of his work. After their first meeting, Salieri understands that Mozart is the better composer, but is shocked to learn that Mozart is obscene, immature, and dissolute. He also learns that Mozart never needs to pen a second draft of his music, implying divine inspiration. Salieri cannot fathom why God would choose a reprobate like Mozart as his earthly instrument. Salieri renounces God and vows to take revenge on him by destroying Mozart. Mozart's work is ahead of its time, and he struggles to find employment in Vienna. He spends himself into debt, alarming his wife Constanze. Salieri and Mozart bond over their shared contempt for Emperor Joseph's lack of taste, but Mozart is unimpressed by Salieri's populist work, which causes Salieri great pain. Mozart boldly adapts the subversive play The Marriage of Figaro into a comedic opera. Salieri rejoices, thinking Mozart's career is ruined, but Mozart stuns Salieri by convincing the Emperor to approve the project. The Emperor, however, finds the opera boring, and it is soon canceled. Eventually, Mozart's father, Leopold, dies. In response to criticisms and his grief, Mozart composes Don Giovanni, a dark, serious opera. Salieri is entranced but vindictively gets that opera canceled, too. Renouncing Vienna's artistic establishment, Mozart agrees to write The Magic Flute for a commoners' theater against Constanze's wishes. After watching Don Giovanni five times, Salieri realizes that the dead commander who accuses Giovanni of sin represents Mozart's inferiority complex towards his father. Posing as an anonymous patron, in a costume Leopold had worn to a masquerade ball, Salieri persuades the unstable and debt-ridden Mozart to accept a commission for a Requiem Mass. Salieri plans to kill Mozart, claim the Requiem as his own, and premiere it at Mozart's funeral, forcing God to listen as Salieri is acclaimed. Mozart overworks himself, juggling The Magic Flute and the Requiem. Constanze, who wants him to focus on the Requiem but fears his erratic behavior, leaves with their son Karl. Although The Magic Flute is a success, Mozart collapses from exhaustion before he can finish conducting the opera. Desperate to complete his plan but also desperate for more of Mozart's heavenly music, Salieri begs the bedridden Mozart to keep writing the Requiem. He takes dictation from Mozart throughout the night, during which he comes to terms with Mozart's superior talent. Mozart thanks Salieri for his friendship, and Salieri admits that Mozart is the greatest composer he knows. Constanze returns and attempts to kick Salieri out of the apartment, locking the Requiem away before he can steal it. As Salieri protests, they are shocked to discover that Mozart has died from exhaustion. Due to his debts, he is buried in a pauper's grave. Back in 1823, Vogler is too shaken to absolve Salieri, who surmises that God would rather destroy his beloved Mozart than allow Salieri to share in Mozart's glory. As Salieri is wheeled down a hallway, he proclaims himself the patron saint of mediocrities. He absolves the asylum's other patients of their inadequacies as Mozart's laughter rings in the air.

T. E. Lawrence dies in a motorcycle accident in 1935. At a memorial service at St Paul's Cathedral, it becomes clear that several influential Britons disliked him. During the First World War, Lawrence is a misfit lieutenant in the British Army, notable for his effrontery and education. Mr. Dryden of the Arab Bureau sends him to meet with Colonel Harry Brighton, who advises Prince Feisal in his revolt against the Turks. Lawrence is outraged when his guide is killed by Sherif Ali ibn el Kharish for drinking from the latter's well. Lawrence accuses Ali of being a barbarian and is dismayed to learn that the latter is Feisal's advisor. Relations between the British and the Arabs are tense. While the British will supply guns to the Arabs, they will not provide artillery, which would make Feisal an independent force. Feisal is impressed by Lawrence's familiarity with the Quran and his honesty about British interests in Arabia. Lawrence violates Brighton's orders by convincing Feisal to launch a surprise attack on the port of Aqaba to improve his supply lines. Ali protests, as Aqaba is protected from land attacks by the Nefud Desert and the local Turkish enforcer, Howeitat tribal leader Auda Abu Tayi. Feisal gives Lawrence just fifty men. Lawrence hires teenage orphans Daud and Farraj as his attendants. During the march to Aqaba, Lawrence wins over Feisal's men by returning to the desert to rescue Gasim. The grateful Arabs give Lawrence traditional clothing. Lawrence convinces Auda to switch sides by promising him a Turkish gold hoard at Aqaba. En route, Lawrence is shaken when he must execute Gasim to prevent a conflict between Feisal's men and Auda's. Lawrence and Auda capture Aqaba, but there is no gold. To placate Auda, Lawrence agrees to ask his superiors in Cairo for more money. Daud is drowned by quicksand along the way. In Cairo, Lawrence perplexes the British officers with his Arab clothes and his insistence that Farraj be treated with the same respect as a British officer. General Edmund Allenby promotes Lawrence to major and backs the Arabs with arms and money. Lawrence asks Allenby whether the Arabs are correct that the British seek to dominate Arabia and demands artillery for Feisal's army. Allenby lies to him on both counts. Lawrence launches a guerrilla war against the Turks. The American media romanticise Lawrence's exploits and make him famous, as American journalist Jackson Bentley is looking to highlight the "more adventurous aspects" of war to help draw the United States into the fight. Ali urges Lawrence to slow down, but the latter ignores him. Farraj is injured during a raid, and Lawrence kills him to save him from the Turks, who torture their captives. The Turks capture Lawrence while he scouts Deraa. The Turkish Bey orders him stripped, ogled, prodded and beaten—and, it is implied, raped. Ali rescues him, but the experience leaves Lawrence shaken and humbled. Dryden informs Lawrence about the Sykes–Picot Agreement, which will partition the Middle East between Britain and France. Allenby urges Lawrence to return to Arabia to support the "big push" on Damascus. Lawrence feels betrayed but complies. He recruits an army with little interest in Arab liberation. Lawrence hopes that if the Arabs can take Damascus before the British, they will be able to demand an independent Arab state. Lawrence's army sights a column of retreating Turkish soldiers who have just massacred the residents of Tafas. One of Lawrence's men is from Tafas and demands no prisoners. Ali insists on proceeding to Damascus, but the man charges alone and is killed. Lawrence takes up his battle cry, and the Arabs massacre the Turks. The Arabs beat the British to Damascus. Lawrence advises them to run the city without British support, but the tribesmen bicker constantly, the public utilities fail, and the understaffed hospitals barely function. Feisal discards Lawrence's dream of Arab independence in exchange for British support. Lawrence returns to the British Army. The British promote Lawrence to colonel and order him back to Britain. As he leaves Damascus, he looks longingly at the departing Arabs before his car is passed by a motorcyclist.

Mahavir Singh Phogat, a former amateur wrestler trained in the traditional Indian pehlwani style, is a national wrestling champion from Balali, Haryana. Pressured by his father, he abandons his wrestling career to pursue steady employment. Despite his disappointment at being unable to win a medal for India, he vows that his future son will achieve his goal. However, upon having four daughters, he initially resigns himself to the belief that his aspirations will remain unfulfilled. His perspective changes when his eldest daughters, Geeta and Babita, demonstrate exceptional strength by defeating boys who insult them. Recognizing their potential, Mahavir begins training them rigorously in wrestling. As a part of the coaching, he subjects them to gruelling early-morning exercises, enforces short haircuts, and insists on discipline, often drawing criticism from the local community. Initially resentful of their father's harshness, the sisters gradually come to appreciate his dedication and the opportunities he seeks to create for them. Using equipment such as mattresses instead of wrestling mats due to financial constraints, Mahavir teaches them freestyle wrestling, preparing them for competitive tournaments. Geeta emerges as a prodigious talent, winning both junior and senior state and national championships, and eventually enrolls at the National Sports Academy in Patiala to train for the 2010 Commonwealth Games. At the academy, Geeta forms new friendships but begins to deviate from her father's training regimen under the influence of her coach, Pramod Kadam, whose methods differ significantly from Mahavir's. This divergence leads to a series of defeats at the international level. During a visit home, Geeta, in a moment of arrogance, challenges and defeats her exhausted father in a wrestling match. Babita reminds her sister of the importance of respecting Mahavir's guidance, prompting Geeta to reconcile with her father. Meanwhile, Babita wins the national championship and joins Geeta at the academy, supporting her emotionally and reinforcing the bond between the sisters. As the Commonwealth Games approach, Pramod assigns Geeta to compete in the 51 kg weight class instead of her customary 55 kg division. Angered by this decision, Mahavir travels to Patiala with his nephew Omkar and resumes coaching the sisters in secret. The sports authorities, learning of Mahavir's interference, issue a warning but allow the sisters to continue competing, while Mahavir is barred from the academy and the girls' movements are restricted. Undeterred, Mahavir continues to train Geeta remotely, reviewing tapes of her previous matches and providing guidance over the phone. During the Games, Geeta competes in her 55 kg weight category. Despite Pramod's instructions, she follows Mahavir's tactical guidance, progressing the final match. In the gold medal bout, trailing 1-5 in the final session with only nine seconds remaining, Geeta recalls her father's strategies and executes a decisive 5-point move in the closing three seconds, clinching a 5-6 victory and winning the match 2-1. She becomes the first Indian female wrestler to win a gold medal at the Commonwealth Games. Mahavir rejoices with his daughters, overshadowing Pramod's attempts to claim credit, and the sisters' triumph is widely celebrated in the media.

A 1959 Senate committee questions ex-AEC Chairman, Lewis Strauss, over his actions during Robert Oppenheimer's security hearing, when a revoked Q-clearance ended Oppenheimer's government advisory role. Strauss, who is nominated for Commerce Secretary, alleges the FBI was suspicious of Oppenheimer since his teaching days, well before anti-Communist William Borden accused him of espionage in 1954. He claims to not have acted against Oppenheimer, despite having many public disagreements with him. In the 1930s, Oppenheimer teaches at Caltech and Berkeley, after studying theoretical physics in Europe. Many Berkeley academics are also Communist Party members, but Oppenheimer does not join himself. After World War II breaks out, Ernst Lawrence of the Radiation Lab, cautions Oppenheimer against having communist connections. Oppenheimer scales back, and is approached by General Leslie Groves to lead the Manhattan Project. Oppenheimer proposes a new laboratory at Los Alamos, New Mexico, where they could endeavor to build an atomic bomb before the Nazis. Edward Teller is recruited to Los Alamos, and theorizes that an explosion would cause (global) atmospheric ignition. While his theory is disproved, he starts researching fusion-based weapons instead of working on the proposed fission bombs. After the War, Soviets test a plutonium bomb, similar to one developed at Los Alamos. In a meeting of top advisors, Oppenheimer frustrates Strauss by favoring arms talks with Russia instead of escalating with Teller's proposed thermonuclear weapons. During a heated period of discussion, Oppenheimer's past security lapses are brought up, including rekindling an affair with Communist ex-lover, Jean Tatlock, immediately after gaining his security clearance in 1942. Oppenheimer also protected his friend Haakon Chevalier from an espionage investigation, by directly lying to security officer, Boris Pash. In his later hearing by the Gray Board at the AEC, the board's counsel, Roger Robb, replays these accusations to make Oppenheimer seem guilty of disloyalty towards the US. In the present, Strauss alleges that Oppenheimer turned scientists against him, starting with Albert Einstein at Princeton in 1947. Teller testifies in Strauss' favor, and David Hill of the Chicago Met Lab is expected to do so too. In July 1945, the Trinity plutonium test is successful, and two bombs are subsequently dropped on Japan. Oppenheimer is labeled 'father of the atomic bomb', but his public stance in the post-war years changes towards nuclear non-proliferation. Irritated at constantly being undermined by Oppenheimer, AEC Chairman Strauss conspires with Borden to initiate the 1954 Gray Board hearing. He appoints Robb as the board's counsel, compromising its independence from the AEC. Oppenheimer's humiliation triggers scientists, who had attested to his loyalty and discretion. At Strauss' Senate hearing, Hill claims the scientific community is against him. Strauss loses the Commerce Secretary nomination and with it, his career. A flashback shows Oppenheimer did not mention Strauss to Einstein at all. Consumed by guilt over bringing atomic weapons to the world, he admits to Einstein that the global catastrophe they feared, and then believed was averted, was now ironically inevitable.

In 1947, John Nash arrives at Princeton University as a co-recipient, with Martin Hansen, of the Carnegie Scholarship for Mathematics. He meets fellow math and science graduate students Sol, Ainsley, and Bender, and his roommate Charles Herman, a literature student. Determined to publish an original idea of his own, Nash is inspired when he and his classmates discuss how to approach a group of women at a bar. Nash argues that a cooperative approach would lead to better chances of success, which leads him to develop a new concept of governing dynamics. His theory earns him an appointment at MIT where he chooses Sol and Bender over Hansen to join him. In 1953, Nash is invited to the Pentagon to decipher encrypted enemy telecommunications. Bored with his work at MIT, he is recruited by the mysterious William Parcher of the United States Department of Defense with a classified assignment: to identify hidden patterns in magazines and newspapers to thwart a Soviet plot. He is given an implanted diode that gives him a passcode to access a drop spot at a mansion. Nash becomes increasingly obsessive with his work and grows paranoid. Nash falls in love with a student, Alicia Larde, and they eventually marry. After a shootout between Parcher and Soviet agents, Nash tries to quit his assignment but is forced to continue. While delivering a guest lecture at Harvard University, Nash believes Soviet agents are pursuing him and is forcibly sedated. He awakens to a psychiatric facility under the care of Dr. Rosen. Dr. Rosen tells Alicia that Nash has schizophrenia and that Charles, Marcee (niece of Charles), and Parcher exist only in his imagination. Alicia, Sol and Bender investigate her husband's study, which shows various news and magazine clippings. Alicia uncovers the stack of unopened "classified documents" from the drop point and brings them to Nash, revealing the truth of his assignment. Overcome with shock, Nash slices his arm open to uncover the diode, which doesn't exist. Nash is given a course of insulin shock therapy and eventually released. Frustrated with the side effects of his antipsychotic medication, in particular erectile dysfunction, he secretly stops taking it. He encounters Parcher, who urges him to continue his assignment in a shed near his home. In 1956, Alicia discovers Nash has relapsed and rushes home. She finds that Nash had left their infant son in the running bathtub, convinced "Charles" was watching the baby. Alicia calls Dr. Rosen, but Nash accidentally hits her and the baby, believing he's saving them from Parcher. As Alicia flees with the baby, Nash realizes that all of them have looked the same ever since he first encountered them, in particular that "Marcee" has always remained a young girl, and concludes they must be hallucinations. Against Dr. Rosen's advice, Nash chooses not to be hospitalized again, believing he can deal with his symptoms himself with Alicia's support. Nash returns to Princeton, approaching his old rival Hansen, now head of the mathematics department, who allows him to work out of the library and audit classes. Over the next two decades, Nash learns to ignore his hallucinations and, by the late 1970s, is allowed to teach again. In 1994, Nash is awarded the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences for his work on game theory and is honored by his fellow professors. At the Stockholm ceremony, he dedicates the prize to his wife. Nash reencounters Charles, Marcee, and Parcher after the ceremony, but ignores them as he, Alicia, and their son leave.