10 Dumbest Characters In Disaster Movies
6. Ruth - Dante's Peak
Dante's Peak's Grandma Ruth (Elizabeth Hoffman) sure is an idiot, right?
For starters, she ignores the very clear warnings from the United States Geological Survey that she should leave her home near the base of the soon-to-erupt volcano, even sticking around well after it erupts.
Ultimately Ruth's hand is forced when Harry (Pierce Brosnan), Rachel (Linda Hamilton), and Rachel's children mount an effort to rescue Ruth. She's saved moments before her house is destroyed by the lava, but that's sadly not the end of Ruth's stupidity.
As the five cross the lake on a motorboat, the lava begins to turn the water acidic, eating away at the boat as it nears the shore. In an attempt to save her family, Ruth jumps out of the boat and pushes it to shore, causing her to die of her traumatic burns the next morning.
Except, the boat was mere feet away from the shore, so her "sacrifice" was totally pointless. Plus, had she actually listened to the initial warnings, she would've survived without putting her family at undue risk. Pfft.