Recently divorced, Duane Hopwood is working graveyard at Caesar's in Atlantic City, a routine that makes it easy for him to rationalize a few drinks after the shift ends at noon. Living for the brief time he spends with his two young daughters and the ex-wife he still cares for, Duane has simply allowed his life to drift into a lonely, tawdry, alcoholic haze. And then a few very bad decisions--one of which involves a flask of booze, a highway patrolman, and his small daughter asleep in the backseat--threaten to make his mediocre life more miserable than he ever imagined possible. With everything meaningful hanging in the balance, Duane begins to wake up to the realities of his life.