Well acted and sharply filmed, "What to Do in Case of Fire" showcases six radical German protesters from the Eighties, four of whom have taken on Yuppie identities. Two, one whose legs were cut off by a police vehicle during a demonstration, and his buddy, an unreconstructed rebel a la Berlin variety, still hope for Der Tag (whatever that might be).
This gang formerly used film to spread their message, insidiously splicing their propaganda takes into innocuous reels. A police raid results in the seizure of many reels of film which will implicate the six for their acts many years early. So what we have (predictably: no spoilers here) is a caper film, mostly comedy but with the requisite bitter dollop of drama - lost love as well as legs) in which the reunited sextet tries to figure out a way to get or destroy the films before the police have a sachertorte und popcorn screening.
There are both funny and sad moments in this American-produced film. The acting is fresh while the underlying story is not exactly original. But...the German radicals of the Seventies and later weren't funny. They killed and destroyed. They didn't project, I'm sure, the endearing qualities of our cohort of six including a got-rich-in-the-market ad exec who boasts of a Manhattan pad and wears an "I Love Bill Gates" shirt.
So a viewer has to put aside sensibilities and fears about the terrorism that is a constant part of our lives to enjoy this film. Okay, I did laugh a bit but I was uneasy as the group sought a solution that in real life could only result in bad things happening to many people. Slaptstick humor and terrorism? Belief really needs to be suspended.
All that said, as film "What to Do in Case of Fire" hangs together and will be enjoyable for many.
6/10. Available for rental on DVD.