In the beginning of the movie Shine, when we first meet the middle aged David Helfgott babbling to himself and wandering in the rain, he is in a state of transition. Behind him is the emotionally isolated existence as a child piano prodigy whose emotional turmoil led to a nervous breakdown and years of staying in a mental institution. Ahead of him is his eventual reconnection with the world around him driven by love and his virtuoso talent that had been long abandoned. As the movie progresses, we first see David's childhood living under his domineering father, Peter Helfgott in a suburban Melbourne house surrounded by barb wire. Peter is a Holocaust survivor, having seen his family destroyed at the hands of the Nazis. He rules the family with a stern demeanor, suffocating them with his love. Peter is obsessed with winning, and the need to keep his family together. This philosophy is imparted on young David, and nothing short of winning satisfies his father. David's father tells him "I know life is cruel, but music will always be your friend, everything else will let you down in the end. Everything. Believe me, everything." Under the guidance of piano teacher Ben Rosen, David's skill is refined, winning him several competitions. In a national championship, he is offered a scholarship by violin master Isaac Stern to study in the United States. However, unwilling to loosen the grip on his son, Peter forbids David from going.

After this missed opportunity, the piano teacher is replaced by an old Russian woman, who continues to encourage David and a second opportunity arises. David gets a scholarship to the Royal College of Music in London. Once again, his father forbids him to go, but in his first show of independence, David leaves the Helfgott home, and his father severs all relations with him. In London, David is mentored by Cecil Parkes and learns to play Rachmaninoff's Third Piano Concerto, one of the most difficult piano pieces to play. David plays this piece perfectly in concert, but suffers an emotional breakdown as a result. We then see David ten years later and he is a shattered man, spending his days in a mental institution, his talent unused, and his name forgotten. One rainy night, having wandered off, he comes upon a restaurant, and expresses himself on the unused piano against the back wall of the restaurant, playing an amazing rendition of The Flight of the Bumblebee. Impressed by his skill and the reaction of the restaurant patrons, the owner of the restaurant hires him to play there. Word of the master piano player spreads across Australia, and soon David finds himself on the stage of a recital hall once again. And along the way, he also finds true love, Gillian an astrologer who inspires him to greatness once again. When David does play again, many years later, he rejects the hollow philosophy of his father and begins a new path, embracing the support of those around him. He truly does shine.