Dante's Peak 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		4.0

Dante's Peak 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov January 17, 2026

Roger Donaldson's "Dante's Peak" (1997) arrives on 4K Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. The supplemental features on the release include archival audio commentary by Roger Donaldson and production designer Dennis Washington; archival documentary with cast and crew interviews; vintage trailer; and more. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

"The most awesome sight you will ever see may be your last."

By the time Twister and Titanic emerged, everyone could see that advancements in digital technology would eliminate the need to shoot on location and, at the same time, make it possible to fake virtually everything that made the conventional disaster film unique. The mainstream filmgoers liked the trend, and after Twister and Titanic, both huge box office hits, several other disaster films with even more silly special effects did very well, too. After Titanic, Armageddon had the longest legs at the box office, but Deep Impact and Deep Blue Sea also met expectations and stuck around for a while.

In 1997, the two other disaster films that were part of this sad evolutionary trend and went against Titanic were Dante’s Peak and Volcano. The former was a more ambitious project that took its disaster fireworks a lot more seriously, but both received plenty of negative reviews. Also, despite claims to the contrary, Dante’s Peak and Volcano never became legitimate competitors because everyone who went to see them knew that they would remain in the shadow of Titanic. They were doomed to be runners-up, which made a possible rivalry between them meaningless, and the only other detail of their fate that mattered was whether their box office receipts would be good. They were.

That Dante’s Peak and Volcano sell various cinematic fantasies as realistic possibilities is undisputable, but this is not the main reason they were bombarded with negative reviews. (All disaster films, even the greatest ones, sell some fantasies as realistic possibilities to their audience. However, the most effective amongst them do it while maintaining a respectable IQ). Dante’s Peak and especially Volcano were, and still are, easy targets for critics because both supersize their cinematic fantasies and simultaneously shrink their IQs to very problematic levels, making it awfully difficult to produce characters that sound logical and look authentic. For this single reason, more than two-thirds of their drama is incredibly easy to discard.

In a direct comparison that takes into account absolutely everything that Dante’s Peak and Volcano do to impress, the former convincingly wins. For example, the authentic footage from Wallace, Idaho, is very effectively used to legitimize some of the volcanic eruptions and destruction that are at the center of its story. Also, all the digital effects that are part of the eruptions and destruction become overwhelming only in the final act. In Volcano, the digital effects very quickly flood the story it tells and remain overwhelming in approximately two-thirds of it.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the acting is a mixed bag in both films. In Dante’s Peak, Pierce Brosnan is a veteran volcanologist who arrives in America’s second-best town and quickly realizes that the nearby, supposedly dormant, volcano is getting ready to destroy it. Linda Hamilton is the town’s mayor and a single mother who quickly falls in love with him. After Brosnan’s assessment of the situation is rejected by his boss, the volcano erupts, and, amidst the destruction and death, heroes are made. Neither the leads nor the supporting cast look convincing.

Despite all the serious damage that its cinematic fantasies and disappointing IQ cause, however, Dante’s Peak is still worth booking a date with. It is one of the last disaster films Hollywood produced that does not immediately begin to look like an elaborate overview of an overdeveloped video game.

Dante's Peak 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Kino Lorber's release of Dante's Peak is a 4K Blu-ray/Blu-ray combo pack. The 4K Blu-ray is Region-Free. However, the Blu-ray is Region-A "locked". Please note that some of the screencaptures included with this article are taken from the 4K Blu-ray and downscaled to 1080p. Therefore, they do not accurately reflect the quality of the 4K content on the 4K Blu-ray disc.

Screencaptures #1-29 are taken from the Blu-ray.
Screencaptures #32-39 are taken from the 4K Blu-ray.

The release introduces an exclusive new 4K restoration of Dante's Peak, sourced from the original camera negative and completed at Universal Pictures. In native 4K, the 4K restoration can be viewed with Dolby Vision and HDR grades. I chose to view it with HDR. Also, I spent plenty of time with the 1080p presentation of the 4K restoration on the Blu-ray.

I did not feel the need to perform direct comparisons with the previous Blu-ray release because, less than fifteen minutes into the film, everywhere I looked, there were dramatic, very convincing improvements in quality. For example, all visuals looked incredibly sharp, not digitally sharpened, and strikingly lush, routinely boasting a dynamic range that they lack in the old presentation of the film. Clarity and depth were spectacular as well, even in the areas where some of the special effects create small fluctuations that tend to flatten delineation. I thought that the HDR grade handled these areas, virtually all of which are darker, wonderfully. The entire 4K restoration is beautifully graded. All primaries and supporting nuances are expertly set and balanced, never battling tealing, and all look outstanding. As a result, the film has the same, very accurate, enormously convincing period appearance that the likes of Happy Gilmore and Coneheads received after they were redone in 4K. There are no traces of degraining, sharpening, contrast boosting, or other similar problematic adjustments. Image stability is outstanding.

The 1080p presentation of the new 4K resolution looks enormously impressive as well. Indeed, the upgrade in quality is significant in all major areas we scrutinize in our review. I went through various sections of the film, and they all look outstanding on my system. If you enjoy the film and can only play Blu-rays, this combo pack brings you definitive presentations of it on 4K Blu-ray and Blu-ray.

Dante's Peak 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are three standard audio tracks on this release: English Dolby Atmos, English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, and English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature. When turned on, they appear inside the image frame.

The new Dolby Atmos track is included only on the 4K Blu-ray. I thought that it was incredibly aggressive, possibly even too aggressive in a few areas. However, I suspect that it is exactly how a lot of viewers would want it. It will definitely test different audio systems. This said, I think the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track is equally great. I compared several sequences -- like the one where the river claims the life of Pierce Brosnan's boss and the one where Brosnan drives the truck into the cave -- and their dynamic intensity was equally great on both tracks. All exchanges are clear and easy to follow. I did not encounter any encoding anomalies to report.

Dante's Peak 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

4K BLU-RAY DISC

• Commentary - this archival audio commentary was recorded by director Roger Donaldson and production designer Dennis Washington. The two gentlemen provide a lot of interesting information about the pre-production and production processes, how key sequences were shot (especially in Wallace, Idaho), the use of authentic locations and special effects, and the volcano's behavior. Fans of Dante's Peak should definitely find the time to listen to the entire commentary.

• Isolated Score & Effects - presented as DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0.

BLU-RAY DISC

• Commentary - this archival audio commentary was recorded by director Roger Donaldson and production designer Dennis Washington. The two gentlemen provide a lot of interesting information about the pre-production and production processes, how key sequences were shot (especially in Wallace, Idaho), the use of authentic locations and special effects, and the volcano's behavior. Fans of Dante's Peak should definitely find the time to listen to the entire commentary.

• Getting Close to the Show - this long archival documentary takes a closer look at the conception and production of Dante's Peak and the shooting process in Wallace, Idaho, where some of the most memorable sequences were staged. Included in it are clips from interviews with Roger Donaldson, producer Joseph Singer, executive producer Ilona Herzberg, Pierce Brosnan, and Linda Hamilton, amongst others. In English, not subtitled. (63 min).

• Trailer - a vintage trailer for Dante's Peak. In English, not subtitled. (2 min).

Dante's Peak 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Even if Dante's Peak had emerged a year earlier and avoided a collision with Titanic, its critical reception would have been the same. It sells too many supersized cinematic fantasies to its audience while shrinking its IQ to seriously problematic levels, which makes it virtually impossible for it to produce any characters that sound logical and look authentic. This said, Dante's Peak is still worth seeing because it is one of the last disaster films Hollywood produced that does not immediately begin to look like an elaborate overview of an overdeveloped video game. Kino Lorber's combo pack brings a terrific new 4K restoration, prepared at Universal Studios, that looks outstanding on 4K Blu-ray and Blu-ray. If you are a fan of Dante's Peak, you should plan to acquire it. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.