Girls’ Night

Dawn Wilkinson wins a 100,000 pound bingo jackpot on a Friday night, and the two lifelong friends expect to split the windfall. Jackie Simpson prepares to take her 50,000 share by packing her things and leaving a note for Dave with the house keys. The moment sets up tensions about money, loyalty, and the shape of their lives.

Jackie begins packing her belongings and quietly leaves her husband Dave with a note and the house keys, signaling a new start. She plans to stay with her lover as she asserts control over her own future. The scene marks a turning point in her marriage and their friendship.

The following day at work, Jackie clashes with her boss and is fired. The abrupt job loss compounds the stress in her already turbulent life. The factory setting grounds the story in a working-class town.

Dawn collapses and is rushed to the hospital, where doctors discover a brain tumor caused by a cancer recurrence. They recommend immediate radiation therapy to halt its progression. The diagnosis forces her to confront her illness in new ways.

Returning home from the hospital, Dawn watches her teenagers roughhouse and is overwhelmed with emotion, breaking down in tears. The scene underscores the emotional strain of her illness on family life. It foreshadows the difficult choices ahead.

At the following Friday's bingo party, Dawn collects the winnings check and the sisters-in-law discuss how to spend it. Jackie hints at a trip to Las Vegas, while Dave furnishes a mortgage-release document that would ease Dawn's financial burden. The money becomes a catalyst for a bold escape from ordinary life.

On Monday, Dawn is taken off the production line and given a simpler, more isolating task at work. Steve then gives Jackie a check for 35,000 pounds rather than the promised 50,000, fraying their sense of fairness and loyalty. The money dispute compounds the stress surrounding her illness.

After a second course of radiation, Dawn vomits and begins to lose her hair, signaling the toll of treatment. She announces that she will quit work due to her declining health. When she refuses further treatment, the doctors note that the radiation is not shrinking the tumor.

Jackie visits Dawn at the hospital, and the two decide to seize the moment with a Las Vegas trip. Dawn's mood shifts from resignation to cautious optimism as they embark on the journey. In their first minutes in Vegas, Dawn hits a slot machine jackpot, signaling a rare moment of luck.

Dawn wins again at the roulette table and Cody, the local cowboy, lends her his hat for good luck. The pair plan a day of Nevada trail riding at Cody's ranch, and Dawn begins to open up to the idea of living in the moment. The trip becomes a vivid counterpoint to the grim prognosis at home.

After their Vegas escape, Dawn's condition leaves her in Jackie's care at home. Jackie nurses her and apologizes to Dave for the strain their relationship has endured. The family begins to accept that Dawn's time may be limited.

Dawn dies and Jackie gives a heartfelt eulogy at her funeral. At the wake, the family finds gifts for the two friends tucked under the bed, and Dawn's message to Jackie from the grave is revealed as Cody's cowboy hat. The hat becomes a symbol of what Dawn wanted Jackie to pursue.

In the aftermath, Jackie travels back to Nevada to be with Cody, carrying Dawn’s memory and the hat as a reminder of their shared journey. The trip helps her reframe her life and honor Dawn's last wishes.