Phonearl Good start, but then it gets ruined

Billie Morin This movie feels like it was made purely to piss off people who want good shows

Brennan Camacho Mostly, the movie is committed to the value of a good time.

Lucia Ayala It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.

Art Vandelay This is an MGM romance dressed up in civil war rags, with some old-fashioned injun-killing to satisfy '50s tastes. Dull Eleanor Parker is on screen far too much. Holden spendsmore time chasing her skirt than he does chasing escaped Confederates or marauding Indians. The only interesting scene is when the camp colonel tells Holden the skirt was playing him so the rebels could escape. Holden illustrates with facial expressions why he was such a great actor. Next scene he's yelling at the sergeant for some reason. Am I the only one who never believes a word Holden says when he's yelling his lines? Purring or growling, yes. But not yelling. I don't think the guy had the genetic makeup to get geniunely angry enough to yell. And the fight with John Forsythe. So much cheese. So many punches that don't come close to landing. Photography is excellent, so I gotta give it some credit. But it would have been a more interesting movie with much less Parker, more bullets put in Confederate jack@@ses, and more Indians that were better at warfare.

RanchoTuVu In 1863 Confederate soldiers are prisoner at Fort Bravo, a Union fort out in Arizona, where Mescalero Apaches are waging a war to defend their land. The fort is not well-garrisoned because there isn't much chance of an escape from Fort Bravo given the Mescaleros and the inhospitable desert setting. The movie has some good actors in William Holden and Eleanor Parker, but the story in which their characters operate does not do much for the western genre. However, there are excellent action scenes when the actual escape takes place with Mescalero arrows raining down from the sky. An improbable dance for the fort's officers and ladies seemed like they felt as if they had to do this to give the film some unnecessary and out of place social context in which to balance out the rugged western landscape. And the nagging and preposterous romantic subplot between Holden and Eleanor Parker waters down the action considerably. Plus everyone was exceptionally well-dressed for the setting they're in makes the whole affair look even more dubious. They may have acted well enough but they didn't have enough desert dust on them. Good thing for the well-executed Apache arrow attack or this film would have been totally borderline.

kenjha In this Civil War Western, Union and Confederate soldiers fight not only each other but also the Indians. This is a good-looking if routine oater that starts slowly but is highlighted by a rugged Indian attack on soldiers trapped in a bunker. Holden is solid as the stalwart captain, although the role does not require him to flex his acting skills. Parker looks lovely as a woman torn between Yankee Holden and Rebel Forsythe. The supporting cast features future TV regulars Demarest, Anderson, and Bergen. It kind of looks like it could have been directed by John Ford, which is not surprising as he set the standard for Cavalry Westerns.

FightingWesterner Tough-as-nails Cavalry officer William Holden prepares to protect a fort full of Confederate prisoners of war against an impending Indian uprising, while the rebels plot their escape with the help of a visiting beauty.Escape From Fort Bravo looks great but it's too slow and ultimately forgettable. Splendid locations and photography only barely manages to help mask the fact that, despite a few very short bursts of action, nothing worthwhile happens for a very long time.Holden's character fails to illicit any emotions from the viewer in either way. He's neither likable enough or ruthless enough and just isn't very interesting, even when he tries to romance the girl. What could she possibly see in him?Things pick up in the fairly exciting final thirty minutes. By then it's a little to late.With Holden's considerable star-power, the great talent of director John Sturges, and the weight of MGM behind it, this should have been a lot better!