"Admittedly, the beginning is somewhat awkward and involved and not easily comprehensible. One doesn't really know where the story of clumsy young Jacob is going. At the latest, however, when Jacob moves into the castle of the alcoholic monarch (a convincing performance by Rolf Ludwig!), the film becomes entertaining, increasingly so with every scene. Egon Schlegel has succeeded in achieving something most remarkable, namely, a poetic and satirical transposition. The two absolute highlights of the film are hell and the divine devil Dieter Franke."
— Renate Holland-Moritz in the Berlin Eulenspiegel, 2/1978

"The scenes set in hell are imaginative and funny. This film can easily compete with the latest inventions of Hollywood's fantasy wave."
— R.T. in the Berlin Der Tagesspiegel on April 9, 1982

"This very free adaptation of the Grimm fairytale The Devil’s Three Golden Hairs is full of humor and subtlety. [...] Although the basic structure of the original fairytale has been preserved [...] the film emphasizes the comedic elements of the story in its setting and staging style, even expanding them to such an extent that the original fairytale is difficult to discover. It works brilliantly. [...] All in all, a witty fairytale entertainment, whose charm, however, is only fully accessible to slightly older children who are able to follow the irony of the story.”   —filmdienst.de