Good Night, Irene

Irene settles into the hotel at the Red Cross training area and meets her roommate, Ellie. Meanwhile, Dorothy Dunford, who has also joined the Red Cross, travels to Washington, DC, from Indianapolis. Dorothy’s whole family has died, including her brother, who died at Pearl Harbor. Dorothy sold the family farm and signed up for the Red Cross because her grief has turned to anger, and she does not want to feel helpless any longer.

When Dorothy arrives at the hotel in Washington, DC, she meets Irene. Together, the two women go to the ballroom with the other volunteers. A soldier named Corporal Russell Penney introduces Captain Marjorie Miller, who tells the new volunteers that they have a great calling to take care of the soldiers; they will see unimaginable things overseas, but they must persevere.

During training, the women learn that they will receive an officer’s rank so that if any soldier tries to assault them, they can pull rank on him. One morning, their trainers take them to a military base. The women talk about one of the handsome fighter pilots who walks by. His nickname is “Handyman.” The soldiers give the women gas masks and make them do laps in a gas chamber. Dorothy and Irene are the only two women who pass the test.

After weeks of training, the Red Cross assigns Irene, Dorothy, and Ellie to the same truck, which is named the Rapid City. The women are stationed in England.

Irene, Dorothy, and Ellie board a ship to England. Later, Dorothy wakes Irene up, and they drink whiskey outside together. Suddenly, they hear explosions in the distance and realize that a torpedo has just hit the ship in front of them.

They land in England at a port city. Russell Penny picks the women up at the docks, telling them that he is a lieutenant now. Russell, or Rusty, drives them to the barracks on the docks. The next morning, they set up near the docks and serve the dockworkers and the personnel from arriving ships. Russell arrives at the end of the day and tells them that their new orders have summoned them to London.

The women board the train to London. On the train, the air-raid sirens sound, and everyone in the train gathers in the center aisle. Bombs hit the train, and Irene realizes that the carriage ahead of them is on fire. She fears that she will die and wishes that she had more time to tell Dorothy about the Woodward farm and how she hated the sound of pigs screaming before they died. The German bombers pass them, heading to a new destination.

The women disembark at the next station. A member of the Red Cross drives them into London. Irene watches the sky, wondering if Hans is flying somewhere above her.

The next morning, a driver takes them to a hotel, where they serve officers in the dining room. Dorothy points out Hans to Irene as he comes down the food line. Irene ignores Hans when he reaches her but surreptitiously watches him as he sits down.

Ellie returns home the next day. One day, Rusty arrives and gives Dorothy and Irene their first official assignment at an army air base in Glatton. Because the Clubmobile teams usually consist of three women, Irene and Dorothy joke about not having a Third Girl in the Truck. Rusty drives them to Glatton and takes them to a cottage in the town where they will stay for the duration of their assignment there.

Irene and Dorothy receive letters from soldiers thanking them for their kindnesses. After a few weeks, Irene decides to put on a talent show to ease the tension at the air base.

One day, after the talent show rehearsals, Irene goes to the pub in the village. Hans sits with Irene and introduces himself as Hans Vanderwey. She asks him how many people he has killed, and he admits that he has killed 13 but says that he does not like to talk about it. He tells her that he has not stopped thinking about her since London. When he walks her outside, he hugs her, but she pulls away when he tries to kiss her.

Dorothy sits in the Aero club and watches the talent show. She recognizes Hans’s friend, Smitty, when he performs a Hitler impersonation that makes the men laugh. Hans plays guitar and performs with a band, winning the talent show prize money.

A few days later, their new truck, Rapid City, finally arrives. Irene and Dorothy are happy to have a truck that will be their new home. That night, they go to the pub, and along with the soldiers, they celebrate the arrival of the truck.

One night in June, Hans throws pebbles at Irene’s window and serenades her. A week later, D-Day takes place, and Dorothy and Irene finally understand the reason for the recent tension at the air base. They receive word from the Red Cross that they need extra help in London, so Irene offers to go, arriving at the hotel in London a few days later. While she bathes, the bombing starts. She jumps out of the tub and puts her uniform on as the sounds of the bombs grow louder. As she rushes outside, the sirens drown out all sound, and she tries to help a soldier in front of her who has glass in his face. He tells her that he saw a girl with flowers just before bombs exploded and asks Irene to help her. Irene runs toward the smoke, looking for the girl. She sees a woman covered in blood and realizes that one of the woman’s arms is detached from her body and is merely hanging in her dress. The woman asks Irene to help her, then collapses on the ground. Suddenly, Hans appears next to Irene and carries her away from everything.

Hans takes Irene to her room and runs a bath for her. He sits outside the bathroom door while she bathes and tells her that she will have to stay busy to forget about the carnage she saw. He plays music for her while she bathes. After her bath, Irene comes out wrapped in a towel, then sits in Hans’s lap and falls asleep. Later, when she returns to Glatton, she tells Dorothy about the bombing. They then receive orders to take the Rapid City to Utah Beach in Normandy. Dorothy drives the Rapid City off a Landing Ship-Tank when they arrive.