and horrifying the audience. The winners are announced, cheerleader Leslie Miller is second runner-up, Amber is first runner-up, with Becky winning. During Becky's victory parade the next day, she is killed in a freak accident when her elaborate swan float (her father had it made in Mexico, to save money) bursts into flames and explodes. A grief-stricken Gladys flies into a blind rage, admitting to being responsible for all the shenanigans, and is immediately arrested. Amber becomes the new pageant winner. At the state competition, Amber wins the Minnesota title by default after the other contestants get food poisoning, receiving an all-expenses-paid trip to the national pageant. Upon arrival, Amber and the other state winners are devastated to find that the cosmetics company was shut down for tax evasion. This sends all the contestants except Amber on a rampage, vandalizing the property. A few years later, Gladys escapes from prison and is sniping from the top of the Mount Rose supermarket, declaring her intent to take revenge on Amber. During the six-hour police standoff, a television reporter at the scene is hit by a stray bullet. Amber quickly picks up the microphone, taking over reporting the story, impressing the news station with her poise and confidence. Amber becomes co-anchor of the evening news for Minneapolis–St. Paul WAZB-TV, thus fulfilling her dream of possibly becoming the next Diane Sawyer. Cast Background The movie is set in the fictional town of Mount Rose, Minnesota. The town is based on Rosemount, where the writer, Lona Williams, grew up. The film was originally titled "Dairy Queens" but was changed for legal reasons. The characters in the movie all sport exaggerated, over the top parodies of Minnesota accents. The film was shot throughout the Carver County area, mainly in Waconia, Minnesota, although names of real Minnesota communities were shown on the sashes of contestants later in the movie. News reporter Diane Sawyer is mentioned throughout the film as Kirsten Dunst's character Amber Atkins's idol as Sawyer was a former beauty pageant winner. Amber's other idols include her beauty pageant mother who raised her alone in a trailer park and the previous year's winner who is hospitalized for anorexia. Competing in the beauty pageant for a scholarship is juxtaposed against the opportunities that boys have in leaving "Mount Rose" such as hockey scholarships and prison. Two Melissa Manchester songs are featured in the film as songs