Director Milos Forman takes on E.L. Doctorow novel's about class, prejudice and politics in turn-of-the-century New York in this film, which was nominated for nine Academy Awards. It charts the course followed by Jewish Tateh (Mandy Patinkin), who wants to be a filmmaker; a failed marriage between a white couple (James Olson and Mary Steenburgen); a love affair between a black pianist (Howard E. Rollins Jr.) and a young black woman; and more.