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Dante's Peak Customer Reviews (28 - 30 of 35 Reviews)

Gripping!
While it contains remarkably realistic special effects, those who have been told that "Dante's Peak" is merely a piece of "eye candy" can consider themselves among the woefully misinformed. It isn't a simple sugar-coated snack to be consumed and hastily digested; it is an elaborately composed symphony of a film. It contains riveting performances, breathtaking locales, a captivating love story and an extremely agile dog. Thus, the "eye candy" label would be ill-suited for this particularly film and more properly directed at other assembly-line disaster movies. Reader, I assure you, after one viewing you will understand: to watch "Dante's Peak" is to have your retinas treated to 109 minutes of cinematic fillet mignon.

The story involves the charmingly quaint town of Dante's Peak and its charmingly quaint inhabitants. While the town is the embodiment of peace and tranquility, there is trouble brewing beneath the surface. Geologist Harry Dalton (played with unwavering masculinity by Pierce Brosnan) and Mayor Rachel Wando (played with unwavering masculinity by Linda Hamilton) believe the town in danger of being destroyed by an unexpected eruption from the presumed-dormant neighboring volcano. Their quest to rescue the town meets resistance in the form of a stubborn city counsel, Dalton's ignorant boss and, of course, an enormous volcano.

It should be noted that "Dante's Peak" is the perfect star-vehicle for Pierce Brosnan. He is pitch-perfect as the resolute Dalton. In fact, it occurred to me while watching the film that nobody other than Brosnan could have played the role (he just looks like a "Harry Dalton," doesn't he?). In the face of Mother Nature's wrath, Brosnan provides the searing rivers of magma with a worthy human adversary. Early in the movie, his character is introduced vigorously doing a grueling set of pushups. Seeing this, we immediately think, 'The volcano doesn't stand a chance.' Indeed, Brosnan is a force of nature all his own.

The film itself is an uplifting one; a tribute to the human spirit. The only thing which disappoints me is that a sequel has yet to materialize. Years have passed since the film's initial release and it has failed to escape the consciousness of movie-goers. "Dante's Peak" has given us such rich characters and wonderfully-realized scenarios, who wouldn't want to witness the further exploits of Harry Dalton & Friends? Personally, upon first viewing the film, I envisioned a trilogy. I could imagine a sequel where the U.S. government calls Dalton out of retirement to stop the potential volcanic eruption of Mount Rushmore. Perhaps in the third installment Dalton & Co. could be thrust into the deep unknown of outer space as they investigate the unusual seismic activity of a dormant volcano on Mars. These sequels, I believe, would prove to be lucrative for the studio while also satiating the overwhelming public thirst for more "Dante's Peak."

Regardless of how many sequels are made, the original film will always remain a classic. A skillfully-crafted spectacle filled with wonderful performances and indelible images, you don't have to be a geologist to realize that "Dante's Peak" is a gem.

Extraordinary Special Effects !
A volcano blows up next to a beautiful town. You do get all you can expect from this content. Romance, action, drama, etc. Good caracter build-up and good story telling.

The actors are also good. Specially Linda Hamilton as the Town's mayor and Pierce Brosnan as the expert volcanologist. But the children and townfolk are also very good. The children's grandma is not as good, maybe because the caracter is not very well developed. Linda Hamilton plays her role much better than in both Terminator films. Casting her was a clever move. Pierce Brosnan is getting better with each film he does.

This DVD is incredible in special effects. Screen and sound are very good. You can also get some interesting extras such as behind the scenes and special effects explanations.

Overall it is a very good movie that takes advantage of a good home theater.

Unbelievable...
[Dolby Digital Version]
Movie Rating: C
Video.......: B+
Audio.......: A-
Extras......: D

Overall: C+

You must leave any sense of skepticism behind in order to enjoy this movie, but less so than "Volcano". Pierce Brosnan and Linda Hamilton are great actors, and they show it in this movie. However, don't expect anything more than a popcorn flick. That being said, Dante's Peak does give some great thrills now and then. It's a good movie to watch with your sound system turned up -- it will certainly give it a workout. Surround details are not distracting, as many movies of this genre can become. I would suspect that the DTS version of this disc has a more enveloping surround field, because the surround field fell a bit flat from time to time in this Dolby Digital version. The video is very good, with few artifacts visible from the compression. Considering the huge amounts of smoke and fog in this movie, that's an acheivement.

Overall, a good disc for some home theater thrill rides.

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