A Small Light

The scenes with Schreiber and Powley are some of the series’ most memorable and touching. It’s a side of Schreiber you’ve likely never seen, and he’s magnificent as Otto. Over the course of the season, every wonderfully written character grows. Anne becomes less petulant, Jan more brave, and Otto less stoic. But without a doubt, Miep is a star-making role for Bel Powley.

Co-creators Joan Rater and Tony Phelan (“Grey’s Anatomy”) find a deeply humanist angle to this well-known piece of history by telling the story of Frank and her family through those who aided them. While the tragic ending for most of the family is no surprise, this approach allows them the grace of humor and anger and happiness and sadness in equal measure.

A Small Light is an extraordinary story about a historic figure people don’t know a lot about, with a compelling lead performance from Powley.

Powley’s performance is particularly arresting. ... Rater and Phelan, and writers William Harper, Ben Esler and Alyssa Margarite, Jacobson sprinkle in glittering moments of defiance, humor and perseverance that help temper the very real feelings of rage and terror laced throughout the series. It’s a balancing act that isn’t often handled as eloquently as it is here.

A glossy but moving tale of resistance and courage, and the risks everyday people take just to hold on to their humanity. ... But the clear highlight of an already-stellar cast (which also includes Noah Taylor and Andy Nyman as fellow Annex residents) is Schreiber, whose Otto is the pillar upon which the show truly rests.

It’s not a somber re-telling of a familiar story but a sensitive, humanistic approach that allows room for humor and happiness even as viewers know the story will inevitably take a tragic turn.

While it may prove difficult to retain viewers week-to-week, A Small Light has the potential to be an incredible series to binge once it is all out. Each episode flows into the next, building on the creeping sense of foreboding and delivering twists and turns.

At eight episodes, A Small Light is far too long, but via Gies’s story it succeeds as an evocative retelling of an oft-documented tragedy.

Taking a heroic approach to that time is always risky, but “A Small Light” does a fine job of it. Without ignoring the fate of the people in the annex, and without turning into a mushy inspirational tale, the series honors Miep’s and Jan’s courage and disgust of fascism.

What transpires is a lively, charming and poignant series that shines a new light on the Netherlands and what happened to its Jewish citizens during the second world war.

There are no happy endings when it comes to Hitler and the Jews. But as a homage to those who tried to make a difference when the lights went out, Disney’s take on the Holocaust shines brightly and bravely.

A bracing, emotional but not excessively sentimental account of a regular woman’s resistance to fascism.

Mostly, though, come for the inspiring reminder that heroism comes in many forms and that it’s measured in doing what’s right and doing what you can, not only in scale; stay for Powley and the ensemble.

A Small Light takes its time in illuminating that source of inspiration, but by the time its eight chapters have concluded, its big heart should ensure that there isn’t (or at least shouldn’t be) a dry eye in the house.

A serious attempt is being made at a complicated mix of tones, the kind of thing an accomplished director working in a shorter time frame would be more likely to pull off; here, executed by committee, it’s done proficiently but without the kind of subtlety or imagination that would do full justice to the story. But there are moments in “A Small Light,” particularly in the first two episodes and again at the end, when it fulfills its promise, and can move you to sudden, unexpected tears.