When I was a child my mother had this movie on DVD and my siblings and I watched it till it wouldn't load anymore. Now that I'm grown up and have rewatched it I can honestly say that while it isn't bad, it isn't as good as my 10 year old self thought it was. Definitely worth the watch though, and showing it to your children a few times when they're old enough to appreciate the story line. Also, some of the reviews have mentioned Harry and Rachel's relationship and how it was built/forced. It said at the beginning that it was 4 years after Harry's fiance was killed plus they had a weak to get to know each other. And that doesn't take into account the fact that they were in a near death situation together. Another comment I found is how it's far fetched that Graham was able to drive Rachel's truck when he's about ten years old. Not that far fetched since in real life there was a six year old who stole his parent's car and drove it home because he didn't want to attend church. And, aside from that, yes some of the things in the movie are far fetched, I won't deny that, but they also have more scientific facts in it than some of the other natural disaster movies that are from recent years.

Dr. Harry Dalton is a volcanologist with the U.S. Geographical Survey sent to investigate seismic activity in Dante's Peak, a small town in Washington that borders a dormant volcano. What begins as a routine assignment quickly turns frantic and deadly, as he becomes the sole 'voice of reason' while trying to convince his superiors and the blissful town inhabitants of an impending eruption. Despite an obvious setup, it's well-acted with beautiful scenery, first-rate special effects, and a solid buildup of suspense...it's only the dramatic aspect of the story-specifically character relationships-that seem familiar and unconvincing, along with an ending that feels much too convenient. **½

What you get from "Dante's Peak" is a pretty typical disaster movie that adds little to that broad "genre." Dante's Peak is a little town in the state of Washington that's nestled against a mountain. It's celebrating the fact that it's been named the "Second Best Place to Live In The United States With A Population Under 20,000." They'll need a huge plaque for the town hall just to get all the words on it. Well, actually they won't. Because there's not going to be a town hall - or a town - for much longer. It turns out that the mountain is a volcano that's getting ready to blow its top.The main characters are Harry Dalton (Pierce Brosnan) - a geologist with the US Geological Survey who realizes that the mountains about to explode - and Rachel Wando (Linda Hamilton) - the mayor of the town. The big question is whether to prepare the town for evacuation. There's just been a company that's made a huge investment, and evacuating because of a potential volcanic eruption won't look very good. Profits before safety, you know - kind of like "Jaws" and other movies. The movie pushes the typical buttons. Rachel has a couple of kids who do something stupid and have to be saved and an ornery mother in law who won't take advice and there's a cute dog too. I was actually more worried about poor Roughy than anyone else in this.Special effects were OK. Performances were OK. Story was typical for a disaster film, although it seemed a little bit long. It's not better or worse than most of them. I wouldn't recommend going out of your way to watch it, but it works if you have some time to kill. (5/10)

This is essentially the same plot as Jaws, but with a volcano standing in for the shark. Stupid town officials don't listen to the warnings of a scientist and boy will they regret it!