Anything involving Jews and the Nazis is going to be a nail-biter, and "A Day in October" is no different. This 1992 film stars Daniel Benzali, Tovah Feldshuh, D.B. Sweeney and Kelly Wolf in this story of a wounded member of the Danish resistance, Niels (Sweeney) taken in by Sara (Wolf), the daughter of Solomon and Emma Kublitz (Benzali and Feldshuh). Niels and his cronies have just bombed the factory where Solomon works as an accountant, as it has been taken over by the Germans for their use. However, they hit the wrong building and the only one to escape is Niels. Niels pressures Solomon to help him bomb the right building; Solomon and Sara have stayed passive during the war, believing nothing will happen in Denmark. Then Solomon sees the dead bodies of Niels' friends and realizes their courage. He finally agrees to help, though the Nazi security guard (Ole Lemmeke) is suspicious of him. Then the family learns that Jews are to be rounded up and arrested. They must try to escape and warn as many of their friends as possible.
This a very good film, both tense and atmospheric. The acting is excellent, with the standout performances belonging to Benzali and Feldshuh. Benzali, who played the successful, self-assured attorney in Murder One is here a nervous, quiet accountant; the beautiful Feldshuh, who as a young actress was one of the stars of Holocaust, displays the emotion and fright that Emma has when she is faced with losing her home and family. She is especially touching in the scene when she tries to place family items into the small suitcase she is allowed to bring to the boat that will take them to Sweden. The love story between Niels and Sara is slow to develop, but a true bond develops between them. Sweeney does not display enough intensity in his role, but Wolf is good as the daughter. Ole Lemmeke is appropriately menacing as the security guard at the factory.
The Danish resistance helped 7500 Jews escape Denmark, and of the 450 or so Jews who were arrested and sent to concentration camps, nearly all survived. Like their fellow Scandinavian countries, the Danes helped the Jews greatly during World War II, demonstrating great humanity that other countries did not.
