“No need to call the Fire Department to handle Fire Down Below […]. Right in the middle of the picture, Mr. Shaw pulls the plug, Miss Hayworth is sloshed into the background and all that’s left are some smoke and steam. […] Say this, however, for the picture: the scenery and photography are superb and an actor named Edric Connor […] is keen.”Bosley Crowther: Screen: A False Alarm; ‘Fire Down Below’ Goes on View at Astor. In: The New York Times, 9. August 1957.
“Hayworth is excellent […]. Lemmon shows plainly that he can handle a dramatic type role while Mitchum, as the tough man of the world, contributes one of his better portrayals.” Vgl. Fire Down Below. In: Variety, 1957.
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“Irwin Shaw’s screenplay has structural problems […] but the bigger problem is its triteness. The characters are poorly drawn, the situations are overly familiar, and the dialogue alternates between dull and ridiculous. […] as he manages to keep the pace fairly brisk, and he’s aided enormously by both beautiful on-location scenery and expert Desmond Dickinson’s camerawork. Mitchum and Hayworth are solid, with Hayworth turning in one of her patented sexy dance numbers.” Craig Butler: Fire Down Below (Memento vom 11. November 2016 im Internet Archive) bei AllMovie (englisch)
