Dante's Peak
Encyclopedia
Dante's Peak is a 1997 disaster film
directed by Roger Donaldson
, written by Leslie Bohem
, and starring Pierce Brosnan
, Linda Hamilton
and Charles Hallahan
. The film portrays the effect of a volcano erupting near a small town in the Pacific Northwest
region of the United States
. The film is loosely based on the real life volcanic eruption of Mount St. Helens
in 1980. It was released a few months before Volcano and eventually received wider success. It has also been recognized for being more scientifically accurate than Volcano, despite gaining lower ratings.
of Dante's Peak, Washington, located in the northern Cascade Mountains, the film is somewhat based on the real-life eruptions of Mount Vesuvius
in 79 AD, Mount St. Helens
in 1980 and Mount Pinatubo
in 1991. The film begins with the eruption of an unnamed volcano in Colombia
during which volcanologist
Dr. Harry Dalton’s (Brosnan
) fiancée, Marianne (Walker Brandt), is killed as the couple tries to evacuate.
Four years later, Dalton is tasked with investigating possible volcanic activity in the Northern Cascades
mountain near the town of Dante's Peak, which has not erupted for 7,000 years. Later, two backpackers (David Lipper and Heather Stephens
) are skinny dipping
in a hot spring
when the water begins to boil, killing the couple. In Dante's Peak, the town is receiving an award for being "The second most desirable place to live in the United States
, population under 20,000" and celebrating its annual "Pioneer Days Festival". Harry meets mayor Rachel Wando (Hamilton
) who, along with her children, Graham (Foley
) and Lauren (Smith
), accompany Harry to the mountain's "high lake" to check the water’s acidity. After checking the acidity and picking up the mayor's estranged ex-mother in-law, Ruth (Hoffman
), the five of them head to the town's hot springs. Harry notices the water still bubbling and abruptly grabs Graham before he dives into the boiling water, startling the other four. Rachel's daughter soon spots the burnt bodies of the two dead backpackers.
Harry calls a town meeting to discuss putting the town on alert during which his boss, Dr. Paul Dreyfus (Charles Hallahan
), arrives and argues against the alert. Harry is upset by this and is told by Paul to take a vacation, but Harry decides to stay at Dante's Peak. Harry remains in the town to help Paul and the USGS
crew, Greg, Terry, Nancy, and Stan (Heslov
, Trutner, Field
, and Ma
) evaluate the mountain. He also forms a bond with Rachel. Two weeks pass before Paul decides to pull the plug on the assignment, there being no signs of the mountain erupting anytime soon. The team decide to head back to their home base. Harry, while out on his last night with the crew spots Rachel. While they're talking, Paul comes over and tells Rachel that the crew, including Harry, is leaving in the morning. Rachel, obviously shocked by this news, says goodbye to Harry. Harry stops her and walks her home. On the way the two almost share a kiss after Rachel reveals she doesn't want Harry to leave but are interrupted by a nosy town councilwoman. After returning to Rachel's home, Harry and Rachel almost kiss once again before they are interrupted by Rachel's daughter asking for a glass of water. As Rachel fills a glass from the faucet, she sees the water is a burnt orange. Harry smells the water, and realizes something's wrong. Rachel and Harry both check the town's water supply plant and discover that sulfur dioxide
has seeped into the town's water supply and conclude that an eruption is imminent. Afterwards, seismic activity and temperatures on and around the mountain begin to increase at an alarming rate, and Paul finally realizes the danger and decides to evacuate the town.
During the town meeting alerting the citizens to evacuate, the eruption begins, causing a stampede
. Earthquake
s bring down telephone lines and buildings, while simultaneously the massive quakes cause the elevated freeways, the only main routes leading out of town, to collapse, trapping the citizens and causing mass chaos.
Meanwhile, the mayor's children take her car and drive it up the mountain to Ruth’s cabin
in hopes of evacuating her. As the eruption continues, the USGS crew prepares to leave. Seismic readings indicate that minor eruptions are taking place all over the mountain, and that they are running out of time. Harry races Rachel to get her children but the (only) bridge being packed with people and cars leaves Harry and Rachel trapped, preventing them from returning to town to get her children. Harry drives down into the river hoping to cross. Half way across the two get stuck and another car t-bones the USGS vehicle, breaking the window and almost flooding the car but the impact frees the truck's stuck tires, letting Harry and Rachel escape the water. Harry and Rachel head up the mountain after the children. Debris and rubble wipe out the road behind them on the way up, blocking any means of going back. They find Ruth refusing to leave. Via radio, Harry tells Paul to pack up the team and evacuate before the mountain blows, but his radio dies. Down in the town, the mountain has expelled large amounts of ash
and most residents have evacuated.
As Harry and Rachel argue with Ruth for her to come with them, a lava flow engulfs all three cars and parts of the house. The five of them flee to the nearby lake and take a metal boat across the lake. It quickly becomes apparent that the acidic content of the mountain has turned the lake to sulphuric acid and is corroding through the metal boat. As they near the shore the boat's motor fails. Ruth, realizing that the boat will not make it to the dock, jumps out to pull it along to the pier before it sinks. She wades through the acidic water screaming in pain, but dragging the boat along to try to save the rest of them and succeeds. After they reach the shore the five of them head down the mountain towards the town.
The USGS crew, meanwhile, is evacuated by the National Guard along with the remaining citizens. Paul gets on the two-way to warn Harry that the rising temperatures of the mountain have caused the ice and snow to melt, and that the resulting mud flow is preparing to take out the river bridge which is now the only way out of town. Paul drives the USGS van, while the other four ride in Humvees. The Humvees make it across the failing bridge, but Paul cannot and is washed away in a lahar
. Further up the mountain, Ruth and Rachel reconcile before Ruth dies from her injuries. At a ranger station, Harry hot-wires
a truck and drives the family down the mountain. When they arrive at the USGS operations center in the town, Harry realizes that the mountain is about to experience a catastrophic eruption. As he leaves, he picks up E.L.F. (Extreme Low Frequency), a tracking device designed by NASA
.
Back in the truck, he and the family seek safe haven in the town's abandoned mines
(ironically, Rachel was angry with Graham near the beginning of the movie for being in the mines, saying that they were "too dangerous") as Dante's Peak finally explodes and a giant pyroclastic cloud
engulfs the town. The truck makes it safely into the mine but the town is destroyed, leading the USGS crew to believe Harry has been killed. (One piece of film footage from this sequence is apparently so realistic that it has made its way into more than one documentary about actual volcanic eruptions.) Inside the mine, Graham leads the way, as most of the abandoned mines served as a hideout for him and his friends, and shows the survivors all of his supplies. Remembering that he left E.L.F. in the truck, Harry leaves to activate it. But before he leaves he sets the kids down and promises the children and Rachel that once they are rescued he would take them to Florida to go deep sea fishing. Harry leaves to activate E.L.F, which causes the mine to collapse a little bit, making Rachel and her kids think he has died. Harry makes it to his truck but not before breaking his arm. While in the truck, Harry is injured by falling rocks and has to reach the tracking device without causing a fatal cave-in. Eventually he reaches the truck but is trapped and nearly crushed inside the truck by falling rocks as he activates E.L.F. The device flashes for "one or two days" before the four are rescued from the mine.
After being rescued from the mine, Harry is met by the rest of his crew, who tell him that Paul didn't make it. Harry realizes he might have collapsed the whole mine, killing Rachel and her kids. But he is soon relieved to hear the announcement that there are survivors. The kids and Rachel are rushed out of the mine. Harry reunites with Rachel's kids before catching eyes with a teary-eyed Rachel. The two burst into laughter and Harry pulls Rachel into a passionate first kiss. On board a helicopter
, Graham asks Harry if he really meant what he said in the mine about taking the family fishing and Harry says, "Sure did". Rachel looks at Harry with a proud look and grasps his hand as they smile at each other.
Meanwhile, as the credits begin rolling, the camera pans across the ruins of the town before finally resting on the Dante's Peak volcano, now reduced to a menacing Mount St. Helens-like horseshoe-shaped caldera
, as the sun rises beside it.
. Howard wrote the main theme (heard during the opening titles) and a number of cues, while Frizzell wrote the bulk of the score.
30 minutes of the score was released by Varese Sarabande
; the short album length being due to high orchestra fees at the time of release. An expanded bootleg exists which contains almost the entire score.
The contents of the CD release can also be found on the region 1 DVD, on an alternate audio track during the 'Creating a Volcano' documentary.
The "Main Titles" cue is also featured on Varese's "The Towering Inferno and Other Disaster Classics" compilation album.
with a large hill next to the town digitally altered to look like a volcano. Many scenes involving townspeople, including the initial award ceremony, the pioneer days festival
, and the gymnasium scene were shot using the actual citizens of Wallace as extras. Many of the disaster evacuation scenes that did not involve stunts and other dangerous moments also featured citizens of Wallace; dangerous stunts were filmed using Hollywood extras. Mount St. Helens also makes an appearance at the very end of the movie; during the start of the closing credit crawl, the scene shows an image of a destroyed Dante's Peak community with the camera shot moving out to show a wider scene of disaster, and then showing what remains of the volcano itself. The volcano that remains is actually an image of Mount St. Helens taken from news footage just after the May 18, 1980 eruption.
Exteriors were also shot at the USGS's David A. Johnston Cascades Volcano Observatory headquarters in Vancouver, Washington. The facility was named in honor of David A. Johnston
, a young scientist who had precisely predicted the volatility of the May 18, 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens, and perished during the event.
A brief scene in the movie was actually shot inside the crater of Washington State's Mount St. Helens
. Specifically, it is the scene where one of the scientists gets caught in a rockslide and breaks his leg while trying to climb down to repair a malfunctioning piece of scientific equipment inside the crater of the volcano. The giveaway of this shot is a brief appearance by Mount Adams
, a dormant 12776 feet (3,894.1 m)-high peak 35 miles (56.3 km) east of Mount St. Helens, just above the crater rim as the view tightens in on the scientists.
Extensive special effects surrounding certain aspects of the film such as the lava and pyroclastic flows, were created by Digital Domain
, Banned from the Ranch Entertainment and CIS Hollywood. The computer-generated imagery
was mostly coordinated and supervised by Patrick McClung, Roy Arbogast, Lori J. Nelson, Richard Stutsman and Dean Miller. Between visuals, miniatures, and animation, over 300 technicians were directly involved in the production aspects of the special effects. Due to the complexity of its visual effects, Dante's Peak was almost nominated for an Academy Award for Best Visual Effects. However, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
chose Titanic
, The Lost World: Jurassic Park
and Starship Troopers
instead.
.
During its opening weekend, it grossed $18,479,435 USD on 2,657 screens, and ultimately grossed $67,155,742 USD, far short of its $116,000,000 budget. However, the film broke even thanks to a strong international campaign that saved the film from a total financial loss and it eventually grossed $178,127,760, making it more financially successful than Volcano, which grossed $122,823,468. Film critic Roger Ebert
, however, says, "Is it a case, for me, of...being overfamiliar...with the ways in which Dante's Peak is simply an old movie in new clothing?", referring to a similarity to the plots of films such as The Poseidon Adventure and giving Dante's Peak two-and-a-half out of four stars.
Disaster film
A disaster film is a film genre that has an impending or ongoing disaster as its subject...
directed by Roger Donaldson
Roger Donaldson
Roger Donaldson is an Australian-born New Zealand film producer, director and writer who has made numerous successful movies. He was a co-founder of the New Zealand Film Commission.-Life and career:...
, written by Leslie Bohem
Leslie Bohem
-Biography:Les Bohem's writing credits include the miniseries Taken, Dante's Peak, Twenty Bucks, Daylight, and The Alamo. Bohem also played bass in the 1980s with the pop groups Sparks and Gleaming Spires. He also wrote the storybook of the Steven Spielberg produced mini-series Nine Lives.-External...
, and starring Pierce Brosnan
Pierce Brosnan
Pierce Brendan Brosnan, OBE is an Irish actor, film producer and environmentalist. After leaving school at 16, Brosnan began training in commercial illustration, but trained at the Drama Centre in London for three years...
, Linda Hamilton
Linda Hamilton
Linda Carroll Hamilton is an American actress best known for her portrayal of Sarah Connor in The Terminator and its sequel Terminator 2: Judgment Day and Catherine Chandler in the television series Beauty and the Beast, for which she was nominated for two Golden Globes and an Emmy...
and Charles Hallahan
Charles Hallahan
Charles John Hallahan was an American film, television and stage actor best known for his performances in Going in Style, The Thing, and Dante's Peak.-Life and career:...
. The film portrays the effect of a volcano erupting near a small town in the Pacific Northwest
Pacific Northwest
The Pacific Northwest is a region in northwestern North America, bounded by the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains on the east. Definitions of the region vary and there is no commonly agreed upon boundary, even among Pacific Northwesterners. A common concept of the...
region of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The film is loosely based on the real life volcanic eruption of Mount St. Helens
Mount St. Helens
Mount St. Helens is an active stratovolcano located in Skamania County, Washington, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is south of Seattle, Washington and northeast of Portland, Oregon. Mount St. Helens takes its English name from the British diplomat Lord St Helens, a...
in 1980. It was released a few months before Volcano and eventually received wider success. It has also been recognized for being more scientifically accurate than Volcano, despite gaining lower ratings.
Plot
Set in the fictional townTown
A town is a human settlement larger than a village but smaller than a city. The size a settlement must be in order to be called a "town" varies considerably in different parts of the world, so that, for example, many American "small towns" seem to British people to be no more than villages, while...
of Dante's Peak, Washington, located in the northern Cascade Mountains, the film is somewhat based on the real-life eruptions of Mount Vesuvius
Mount Vesuvius
Mount Vesuvius is a stratovolcano in the Gulf of Naples, Italy, about east of Naples and a short distance from the shore. It is the only volcano on the European mainland to have erupted within the last hundred years, although it is not currently erupting...
in 79 AD, Mount St. Helens
Mount St. Helens
Mount St. Helens is an active stratovolcano located in Skamania County, Washington, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is south of Seattle, Washington and northeast of Portland, Oregon. Mount St. Helens takes its English name from the British diplomat Lord St Helens, a...
in 1980 and Mount Pinatubo
Mount Pinatubo
Mount Pinatubo is an active stratovolcano located on the island of Luzon, near the tripoint of the Philippine provinces of Zambales, Tarlac, and Pampanga. It is located in the Tri-Cabusilan Mountain range separating the west coast of Luzon from the central plains, and is west of the dormant and...
in 1991. The film begins with the eruption of an unnamed volcano in Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
during which volcanologist
Volcanology
Volcanology is the study of volcanoes, lava, magma, and related geological, geophysical and geochemical phenomena. The term volcanology is derived from the Latin word vulcan. Vulcan was the ancient Roman god of fire....
Dr. Harry Dalton’s (Brosnan
Pierce Brosnan
Pierce Brendan Brosnan, OBE is an Irish actor, film producer and environmentalist. After leaving school at 16, Brosnan began training in commercial illustration, but trained at the Drama Centre in London for three years...
) fiancée, Marianne (Walker Brandt), is killed as the couple tries to evacuate.
Four years later, Dalton is tasked with investigating possible volcanic activity in the Northern Cascades
Cascade Range
The Cascade Range is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia through Washington and Oregon to Northern California. It includes both non-volcanic mountains, such as the North Cascades, and the notable volcanoes known as the High Cascades...
mountain near the town of Dante's Peak, which has not erupted for 7,000 years. Later, two backpackers (David Lipper and Heather Stephens
Heather Stephens
Heather Stephens is an American actress. She has red hair and brown eyes. She is currently starring on ABC's The Forgotten as Lindsey Drake alongside Christian Slater.- Filmography :* The Watcher .... Lisa...
) are skinny dipping
Skinny dipping
Nude swimming, colloquially called skinny dipping, is a term used to describe swimming naked.-Etymology:The term skinny dip, first recorded in English in the 1950s, includes the somewhat archaic word skinny, known since 1573, meaning "having to do with skin", as it exposed the naked...
in a hot spring
Hot spring
A hot spring is a spring that is produced by the emergence of geothermally heated groundwater from the Earth's crust. There are geothermal hot springs in many locations all over the crust of the earth.-Definitions:...
when the water begins to boil, killing the couple. In Dante's Peak, the town is receiving an award for being "The second most desirable place to live in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, population under 20,000" and celebrating its annual "Pioneer Days Festival". Harry meets mayor Rachel Wando (Hamilton
Linda Hamilton
Linda Carroll Hamilton is an American actress best known for her portrayal of Sarah Connor in The Terminator and its sequel Terminator 2: Judgment Day and Catherine Chandler in the television series Beauty and the Beast, for which she was nominated for two Golden Globes and an Emmy...
) who, along with her children, Graham (Foley
Jeremy Foley (actor)
Jeremy Arturo Foley is an American actor. Jeremy is perhaps best known for his appearance as Billy in the Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode "Nightmares", as well as his supporting role of Griffen Lowe in the Nickelodeon show Caitlin's Way. Foley also played Graham in Dante's Peak...
) and Lauren (Smith
Jamie Renee Smith
Jamie Renée Smith is an American actress.-Biography:Born in New York City, Smith began her acting career at the age of six when, at her first audition, she landed a guest-starring role on an episode of Saved by the Bell: The College Years...
), accompany Harry to the mountain's "high lake" to check the water’s acidity. After checking the acidity and picking up the mayor's estranged ex-mother in-law, Ruth (Hoffman
Elizabeth Hoffman (actress)
Elizabeth Hoffman is an American actress who has guest-starred in a number of television shows, mini-series as well as several movies including playing the role of "Grandma Ruth" in Dante's Peak. She also played the role of Beatrice Reed on the television drama Sisters and Catherine Langford in...
), the five of them head to the town's hot springs. Harry notices the water still bubbling and abruptly grabs Graham before he dives into the boiling water, startling the other four. Rachel's daughter soon spots the burnt bodies of the two dead backpackers.
Harry calls a town meeting to discuss putting the town on alert during which his boss, Dr. Paul Dreyfus (Charles Hallahan
Charles Hallahan
Charles John Hallahan was an American film, television and stage actor best known for his performances in Going in Style, The Thing, and Dante's Peak.-Life and career:...
), arrives and argues against the alert. Harry is upset by this and is told by Paul to take a vacation, but Harry decides to stay at Dante's Peak. Harry remains in the town to help Paul and the USGS
United States Geological Survey
The United States Geological Survey is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, and the natural hazards that threaten it. The organization has four major science disciplines, concerning biology,...
crew, Greg, Terry, Nancy, and Stan (Heslov
Grant Heslov
Grant Heslov is an American actor, film producer, screenwriter and director.-Early life:Heslov was born in Los Angeles, into a Jewish family and was raised in the Palos Verdes area of Los Angeles. He attended Palos Verdes High School, the University of Southern California along with friend Tate...
, Trutner, Field
Arabella Field
Arabella Field is an American actress and film producer known for her roles in films such as Dante's Peak, Feeling Minnesota, Godzilla, National Treasure, Paper Man and as Melinda Bitterman in the animated television version of Rick Kirkman and Jerry Scott's daily comic strip Baby Blues.Field was...
, and Ma
Tzi Ma
Tzi Ma is a Chinese American actor who has made numerous appearances in American films and TV series.-Life and career:Ma was born in Hong Kong...
) evaluate the mountain. He also forms a bond with Rachel. Two weeks pass before Paul decides to pull the plug on the assignment, there being no signs of the mountain erupting anytime soon. The team decide to head back to their home base. Harry, while out on his last night with the crew spots Rachel. While they're talking, Paul comes over and tells Rachel that the crew, including Harry, is leaving in the morning. Rachel, obviously shocked by this news, says goodbye to Harry. Harry stops her and walks her home. On the way the two almost share a kiss after Rachel reveals she doesn't want Harry to leave but are interrupted by a nosy town councilwoman. After returning to Rachel's home, Harry and Rachel almost kiss once again before they are interrupted by Rachel's daughter asking for a glass of water. As Rachel fills a glass from the faucet, she sees the water is a burnt orange. Harry smells the water, and realizes something's wrong. Rachel and Harry both check the town's water supply plant and discover that sulfur dioxide
Sulfur dioxide
Sulfur dioxide is the chemical compound with the formula . It is released by volcanoes and in various industrial processes. Since coal and petroleum often contain sulfur compounds, their combustion generates sulfur dioxide unless the sulfur compounds are removed before burning the fuel...
has seeped into the town's water supply and conclude that an eruption is imminent. Afterwards, seismic activity and temperatures on and around the mountain begin to increase at an alarming rate, and Paul finally realizes the danger and decides to evacuate the town.
During the town meeting alerting the citizens to evacuate, the eruption begins, causing a stampede
Stampede
A stampede is an act of mass impulse among herd animals or a crowd of people in which the herd collectively begins running with no clear direction or purpose....
. Earthquake
Earthquake
An earthquake is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth's crust that creates seismic waves. The seismicity, seismism or seismic activity of an area refers to the frequency, type and size of earthquakes experienced over a period of time...
s bring down telephone lines and buildings, while simultaneously the massive quakes cause the elevated freeways, the only main routes leading out of town, to collapse, trapping the citizens and causing mass chaos.
Meanwhile, the mayor's children take her car and drive it up the mountain to Ruth’s cabin
Log cabin
A log cabin is a house built from logs. It is a fairly simple type of log house. A distinction should be drawn between the traditional meanings of "log cabin" and "log house." Historically most "Log cabins" were a simple one- or 1½-story structures, somewhat impermanent, and less finished or less...
in hopes of evacuating her. As the eruption continues, the USGS crew prepares to leave. Seismic readings indicate that minor eruptions are taking place all over the mountain, and that they are running out of time. Harry races Rachel to get her children but the (only) bridge being packed with people and cars leaves Harry and Rachel trapped, preventing them from returning to town to get her children. Harry drives down into the river hoping to cross. Half way across the two get stuck and another car t-bones the USGS vehicle, breaking the window and almost flooding the car but the impact frees the truck's stuck tires, letting Harry and Rachel escape the water. Harry and Rachel head up the mountain after the children. Debris and rubble wipe out the road behind them on the way up, blocking any means of going back. They find Ruth refusing to leave. Via radio, Harry tells Paul to pack up the team and evacuate before the mountain blows, but his radio dies. Down in the town, the mountain has expelled large amounts of ash
Volcanic ash
Volcanic ash consists of small tephra, which are bits of pulverized rock and glass created by volcanic eruptions, less than in diameter. There are three mechanisms of volcanic ash formation: gas release under decompression causing magmatic eruptions; thermal contraction from chilling on contact...
and most residents have evacuated.
As Harry and Rachel argue with Ruth for her to come with them, a lava flow engulfs all three cars and parts of the house. The five of them flee to the nearby lake and take a metal boat across the lake. It quickly becomes apparent that the acidic content of the mountain has turned the lake to sulphuric acid and is corroding through the metal boat. As they near the shore the boat's motor fails. Ruth, realizing that the boat will not make it to the dock, jumps out to pull it along to the pier before it sinks. She wades through the acidic water screaming in pain, but dragging the boat along to try to save the rest of them and succeeds. After they reach the shore the five of them head down the mountain towards the town.
The USGS crew, meanwhile, is evacuated by the National Guard along with the remaining citizens. Paul gets on the two-way to warn Harry that the rising temperatures of the mountain have caused the ice and snow to melt, and that the resulting mud flow is preparing to take out the river bridge which is now the only way out of town. Paul drives the USGS van, while the other four ride in Humvees. The Humvees make it across the failing bridge, but Paul cannot and is washed away in a lahar
Lahar
A lahar is a type of mudflow or debris flow composed of a slurry of pyroclastic material, rocky debris, and water. The material flows down from a volcano, typically along a river valley. The term is a shortened version of "berlahar" which originated in the Javanese language of...
. Further up the mountain, Ruth and Rachel reconcile before Ruth dies from her injuries. At a ranger station, Harry hot-wires
Hotwiring
Hot-wiring is the process of bypassing an automobile's ignition interlock and thus starting it without the key. A vehicle owner or thief may implement this process.-Methods:...
a truck and drives the family down the mountain. When they arrive at the USGS operations center in the town, Harry realizes that the mountain is about to experience a catastrophic eruption. As he leaves, he picks up E.L.F. (Extreme Low Frequency), a tracking device designed by NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
.
Back in the truck, he and the family seek safe haven in the town's abandoned mines
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
(ironically, Rachel was angry with Graham near the beginning of the movie for being in the mines, saying that they were "too dangerous") as Dante's Peak finally explodes and a giant pyroclastic cloud
Pyroclastic flow
A pyroclastic flow is a fast-moving current of superheated gas and rock , which reaches speeds moving away from a volcano of up to 700 km/h . The flows normally hug the ground and travel downhill, or spread laterally under gravity...
engulfs the town. The truck makes it safely into the mine but the town is destroyed, leading the USGS crew to believe Harry has been killed. (One piece of film footage from this sequence is apparently so realistic that it has made its way into more than one documentary about actual volcanic eruptions.) Inside the mine, Graham leads the way, as most of the abandoned mines served as a hideout for him and his friends, and shows the survivors all of his supplies. Remembering that he left E.L.F. in the truck, Harry leaves to activate it. But before he leaves he sets the kids down and promises the children and Rachel that once they are rescued he would take them to Florida to go deep sea fishing. Harry leaves to activate E.L.F, which causes the mine to collapse a little bit, making Rachel and her kids think he has died. Harry makes it to his truck but not before breaking his arm. While in the truck, Harry is injured by falling rocks and has to reach the tracking device without causing a fatal cave-in. Eventually he reaches the truck but is trapped and nearly crushed inside the truck by falling rocks as he activates E.L.F. The device flashes for "one or two days" before the four are rescued from the mine.
After being rescued from the mine, Harry is met by the rest of his crew, who tell him that Paul didn't make it. Harry realizes he might have collapsed the whole mine, killing Rachel and her kids. But he is soon relieved to hear the announcement that there are survivors. The kids and Rachel are rushed out of the mine. Harry reunites with Rachel's kids before catching eyes with a teary-eyed Rachel. The two burst into laughter and Harry pulls Rachel into a passionate first kiss. On board a helicopter
Helicopter
A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by one or more engine-driven rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forwards, backwards, and laterally...
, Graham asks Harry if he really meant what he said in the mine about taking the family fishing and Harry says, "Sure did". Rachel looks at Harry with a proud look and grasps his hand as they smile at each other.
Meanwhile, as the credits begin rolling, the camera pans across the ruins of the town before finally resting on the Dante's Peak volcano, now reduced to a menacing Mount St. Helens-like horseshoe-shaped caldera
Caldera
A caldera is a cauldron-like volcanic feature usually formed by the collapse of land following a volcanic eruption, such as the one at Yellowstone National Park in the US. They are sometimes confused with volcanic craters...
, as the sun rises beside it.
Cast
- Pierce BrosnanPierce BrosnanPierce Brendan Brosnan, OBE is an Irish actor, film producer and environmentalist. After leaving school at 16, Brosnan began training in commercial illustration, but trained at the Drama Centre in London for three years...
(Dr. Harry Dalton) - Linda HamiltonLinda HamiltonLinda Carroll Hamilton is an American actress best known for her portrayal of Sarah Connor in The Terminator and its sequel Terminator 2: Judgment Day and Catherine Chandler in the television series Beauty and the Beast, for which she was nominated for two Golden Globes and an Emmy...
(Rachel Wando - Mayor of Dante's Peak) - Charles HallahanCharles HallahanCharles John Hallahan was an American film, television and stage actor best known for his performances in Going in Style, The Thing, and Dante's Peak.-Life and career:...
(Dr. Paul Dreyfus) - Elizabeth HoffmanElizabeth Hoffman (actress)Elizabeth Hoffman is an American actress who has guest-starred in a number of television shows, mini-series as well as several movies including playing the role of "Grandma Ruth" in Dante's Peak. She also played the role of Beatrice Reed on the television drama Sisters and Catherine Langford in...
(Grandma Ruth) - Jamie Renée SmithJamie Renee SmithJamie Renée Smith is an American actress.-Biography:Born in New York City, Smith began her acting career at the age of six when, at her first audition, she landed a guest-starring role on an episode of Saved by the Bell: The College Years...
(Lauren Wando) - Jeremy FoleyJeremy Foley (actor)Jeremy Arturo Foley is an American actor. Jeremy is perhaps best known for his appearance as Billy in the Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode "Nightmares", as well as his supporting role of Griffen Lowe in the Nickelodeon show Caitlin's Way. Foley also played Graham in Dante's Peak...
(Graham Wando) - Grant HeslovGrant HeslovGrant Heslov is an American actor, film producer, screenwriter and director.-Early life:Heslov was born in Los Angeles, into a Jewish family and was raised in the Palos Verdes area of Los Angeles. He attended Palos Verdes High School, the University of Southern California along with friend Tate...
(Greg) - Kirk Trutner (Terry)
- Arabella FieldArabella FieldArabella Field is an American actress and film producer known for her roles in films such as Dante's Peak, Feeling Minnesota, Godzilla, National Treasure, Paper Man and as Melinda Bitterman in the animated television version of Rick Kirkman and Jerry Scott's daily comic strip Baby Blues.Field was...
(Nancy) - Tzi MaTzi MaTzi Ma is a Chinese American actor who has made numerous appearances in American films and TV series.-Life and career:Ma was born in Hong Kong...
(Stan) - Brian Reddy (Les Worell)
- Lee GarlingtonLee GarlingtonAnn Leslie "Lee" Garlington is an American actress.Garlington was born in Teaneck, New Jersey. She has guest starred in a number of notable television series, including The West Wing, 7th Heaven, 8 Simple Rules, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Judging Amy, L.A...
(Dr. Jane Fox) - Bill BolenderBill BolenderBill Bolender is an American actor and artist.He has appeared in many popular films including RoboCop 2, JFK, Reality Bites, The Shawshank Redemption, Nixon and Dante's Peak....
(Sheriff Turner)
Music
The original score was co-composed by John Frizzell and James Newton HowardJames Newton Howard
James Newton Howard is an American composer best known for his scores to motion pictures. He is one of the most popular and respected composers for cinema, and has scored over 100 films...
. Howard wrote the main theme (heard during the opening titles) and a number of cues, while Frizzell wrote the bulk of the score.
30 minutes of the score was released by Varese Sarabande
Varèse Sarabande
Varèse Sarabande is an American record label, distributed by Universal Music Group, which specializes in film scores and original cast recordings. It aims to reissue rare or unavailable albums as well as newer releases by artists no longer under a contract...
; the short album length being due to high orchestra fees at the time of release. An expanded bootleg exists which contains almost the entire score.
The contents of the CD release can also be found on the region 1 DVD, on an alternate audio track during the 'Creating a Volcano' documentary.
The "Main Titles" cue is also featured on Varese's "The Towering Inferno and Other Disaster Classics" compilation album.
Production
The film was shot on location in Wallace, IdahoWallace, Idaho
Wallace is a historic city in the Panhandle region of the U.S. state of Idaho and the county seat of Shoshone County in the Silver Valley mining district...
with a large hill next to the town digitally altered to look like a volcano. Many scenes involving townspeople, including the initial award ceremony, the pioneer days festival
Festival
A festival or gala is an event, usually and ordinarily staged by a local community, which centers on and celebrates some unique aspect of that community and the Festival....
, and the gymnasium scene were shot using the actual citizens of Wallace as extras. Many of the disaster evacuation scenes that did not involve stunts and other dangerous moments also featured citizens of Wallace; dangerous stunts were filmed using Hollywood extras. Mount St. Helens also makes an appearance at the very end of the movie; during the start of the closing credit crawl, the scene shows an image of a destroyed Dante's Peak community with the camera shot moving out to show a wider scene of disaster, and then showing what remains of the volcano itself. The volcano that remains is actually an image of Mount St. Helens taken from news footage just after the May 18, 1980 eruption.
Exteriors were also shot at the USGS's David A. Johnston Cascades Volcano Observatory headquarters in Vancouver, Washington. The facility was named in honor of David A. Johnston
David A. Johnston
David Alexander Johnston was an American volcanologist with the United States Geological Survey who was killed by the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens in Washington. One of the principal scientists on the monitoring team, Johnston died while manning an observation post about 6 miles from the...
, a young scientist who had precisely predicted the volatility of the May 18, 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens, and perished during the event.
A brief scene in the movie was actually shot inside the crater of Washington State's Mount St. Helens
Mount St. Helens
Mount St. Helens is an active stratovolcano located in Skamania County, Washington, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is south of Seattle, Washington and northeast of Portland, Oregon. Mount St. Helens takes its English name from the British diplomat Lord St Helens, a...
. Specifically, it is the scene where one of the scientists gets caught in a rockslide and breaks his leg while trying to climb down to repair a malfunctioning piece of scientific equipment inside the crater of the volcano. The giveaway of this shot is a brief appearance by Mount Adams
Mount Adams (Washington)
Mount Adams is a potentially activestratovolcano in the Cascade Range and the second-highest mountain in the U.S. state of Washington.Adams is a member of the Cascade Volcanic Arc, and is one of the arc's largest volcanoes,...
, a dormant 12776 feet (3,894.1 m)-high peak 35 miles (56.3 km) east of Mount St. Helens, just above the crater rim as the view tightens in on the scientists.
Extensive special effects surrounding certain aspects of the film such as the lava and pyroclastic flows, were created by Digital Domain
Digital Domain
Digital Domain is a visual effects and animation company founded by film director James Cameron, Stan Winston and Scott Ross. It is based in Venice, Los Angeles, California...
, Banned from the Ranch Entertainment and CIS Hollywood. The computer-generated imagery
Computer-generated imagery
Computer-generated imagery is the application of the field of computer graphics or, more specifically, 3D computer graphics to special effects in art, video games, films, television programs, commercials, simulators and simulation generally, and printed media...
was mostly coordinated and supervised by Patrick McClung, Roy Arbogast, Lori J. Nelson, Richard Stutsman and Dean Miller. Between visuals, miniatures, and animation, over 300 technicians were directly involved in the production aspects of the special effects. Due to the complexity of its visual effects, Dante's Peak was almost nominated for an Academy Award for Best Visual Effects. However, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is a professional honorary organization dedicated to the advancement of the arts and sciences of motion pictures...
chose Titanic
Titanic (1997 film)
Titanic is a 1997 American epic romance and disaster film directed, written, co-produced, and co-edited by James Cameron. A fictionalized account of the sinking of the RMS Titanic, it stars Leonardo DiCaprio as Jack Dawson, Kate Winslet as Rose DeWitt Bukater and Billy Zane as Rose's fiancé, Cal...
, The Lost World: Jurassic Park
The Lost World: Jurassic Park
The Lost World: Jurassic Park is a 1997 science fiction thriller film, directed by Steven Spielberg. The film was produced by Bonnie Curtis, Kathleen Kennedy, Gerald R. Molen and Colin Wilson...
and Starship Troopers
Starship Troopers (film)
Starship Troopers is a 1997 American military science fiction film, written by Edward Neumeier , directed by Paul Verhoeven, loosely adapted from Starship Troopers, a science fiction novel by Robert A. Heinlein. It is the only theatrically released film in the Starship Troopers franchise...
instead.
Locations
- Agua DulceAgua Dulce, CaliforniaAgua Dulce is a census-designated place located in Los Angeles County, California. It lies at an elevation of 2,526 feet . Agua Dulce is located just north of Santa Clarita. The town has a population of about 4,000. It is located at and covers a geographic area of about...
, California, USA - Baker Hot Springs, Mount Baker National ForestMount Baker National ForestMount Baker National Forest was established in Washington on January 21, 1924 when its name was changed from Washington National Forest. In 1974 it was administratively combined with Snoqualmie National Forest to make Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. In descending order of land area, Mount...
, Washington, USA - Mount St. Helens National Volcanic MonumentMount St. Helens National Volcanic MonumentMount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument is a U.S. National Monument that includes the area around Mount St. Helens in Washington. It was established on August 27, 1982 by U.S. President Ronald Reagan following the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens. The 110,000 acre National Volcanic...
, Washington, USA (establishing shots) - WallaceWallace, IdahoWallace is a historic city in the Panhandle region of the U.S. state of Idaho and the county seat of Shoshone County in the Silver Valley mining district...
, Idaho, USA (town exteriors)
Reception
Despite having wider financial success, and being slightly more scientifically accurate than Volcano, Dante's Peak opened to more unfavourable reviews than its rival, and holds a 27% rating at RottenTomatoes.comRotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
.
During its opening weekend, it grossed $18,479,435 USD on 2,657 screens, and ultimately grossed $67,155,742 USD, far short of its $116,000,000 budget. However, the film broke even thanks to a strong international campaign that saved the film from a total financial loss and it eventually grossed $178,127,760, making it more financially successful than Volcano, which grossed $122,823,468. Film critic Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
, however, says, "Is it a case, for me, of...being overfamiliar...with the ways in which Dante's Peak is simply an old movie in new clothing?", referring to a similarity to the plots of films such as The Poseidon Adventure and giving Dante's Peak two-and-a-half out of four stars.
See also
- List of American films of 1997
- Mount St. HelensMount St. HelensMount St. Helens is an active stratovolcano located in Skamania County, Washington, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is south of Seattle, Washington and northeast of Portland, Oregon. Mount St. Helens takes its English name from the British diplomat Lord St Helens, a...
- Mount PinatuboMount PinatuboMount Pinatubo is an active stratovolcano located on the island of Luzon, near the tripoint of the Philippine provinces of Zambales, Tarlac, and Pampanga. It is located in the Tri-Cabusilan Mountain range separating the west coast of Luzon from the central plains, and is west of the dormant and...
- Volcano, another disaster film released in 1997
- "Volcano" (South Park)
External links
- Volcanoes in Historical and Popular Culture "In The Movies" - Dante's Peak at U.S. Geological Survey website.
- Dante's Peak at Internet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...