Reviews provided by RottenTomatoes
Bosley Crowther, New York Times: Mr. Cooper may be a little loose-tooth in spots, but he gives a homespun performance such as only he can give. Miss Stanwyck is plenty yum-yum (meaning scorchy) in her worldly temptress role. Read more
Don Druker, Chicago Reader: A delight. Read more
TIME Magazine: Actor Cooper plays his Mr. Deeds role with the authority of long familiarity, and Miss Stanwyck (once Ruby Stevens, of Brooklyn) is equally at home in hers. Read more
Variety Staff, Variety: Casting is meticulously perfect to make every character a caricature of itself. Read more
Charles Taylor, Village Voice: Ball of Fire came out five days before Pearl Harbor. You can imagine Americans listening to its flood of slang and knowing exactly what they were fighting for. Read more