William Holden's character, in the Civil War-era Western "Escape From Fort Bravo" (1953), has a very appropriate name. When we first see his Capt. Roper, he is dragging an escaped Confederate prisoner, by rope, across the desert; a not-so-subtle warning to any other rebs who might be planning a similar break from the Union fort, deep in the Arizona Territory. But when that escape comes, led by Southern Capt. Marsh (John Forsythe) and abetted by Texan belle Carla Forester (Eleanor Parker), Roper is forced to follow the fugitives...even though the path leads straight into the country of the bloodthirsty Mescalero Apaches. Filmed in Death Valley National Monument and in gorgeous color, "Escape From Fort Bravo" showcases some truly spectacular scenery, not the least of which is Eleanor herself. One of the 1950s' most gorgeous of actresses, she looks absolutely ravishing here, her famous red hair a wonder to behold. She would also appear the next year in another film--"The Naked Jungle"--featuring man-eating ants. (Oh, did I forget to mention that those Mescaleros have a nasty habit of tying their prisoners to ant hills?) "Escape" boasts a very tough-talking script, with glints of humor coming from the bickerings between (those great character actors) Williams Demarest and Campbell, and its final third is remarkably suspenseful, as Roper, Carla and the escaped rebs are laid siege in a ditch, while the Mescaleros pick them off with rifle shot and lob volleys of arrows into their midst. Director John Sturges would go on to make three more classic Westerns over the next seven years ("Gunfight at the O.K. Corral," "Last Train From Gun Hill" and, of course, "The Magnificent Seven"), and here turns what is basically a "cavalry and Injuns pic" into a thing of real beauty and excitement. Yes, I really did enjoy this one.