Rediff.com« Back to articlePrint this article

These gentlemen get sexier with age

Last updated on: March 18, 2010 12:53 IST
Antonio Banderas

Age is all in the mind.

Well, for men, anyway. Even as pretty women grow old and are discarded by show business and given only character-intensive roles, men get better as they get older, and several still qualify for the desirable tag, even when they're grandfathers.

Because truly striking men don't get old, they get better.

Here's a look at ten leading men, almost 50 and way above, who can still make women weak in the knees:

Antonio Banderas

From long-haired gun toting assassin to the Puss in Boots in the Shrek franchise, Antonio Banderas has been around and he's been bad-ass.

He's still widely considered a significant hunk, and it's no mean feat considering he turns 50 in August this year.

Jeff Bridges

Last updated on: March 18, 2010 12:53 IST
Jeff Bridges

The current toast of Hollywood, Bridges might not be conventionally hot but he's one massive glacier of pure Cool.

Forever defined most by his stoner role in The Big Lebowski, the actor just won a richly deserved Best Actor Oscar for his work in Crazy Heart.

Cool as ice, man, and he's 60.

Colin Firth

Last updated on: March 18, 2010 12:53 IST
Colin Firth

Most of it is because of Pride And Prejudice, but ask any woman in the world about Colin Firth and they'll have a little Mr Darcy-driven orgasm in their heads.

Firth, doing fantastically well in Tom Ford's recent film A Single Man, is a fine fine actor and turns 50 this September. Wow.

Richard Gere

Last updated on: March 18, 2010 12:53 IST
Richard Gere

From Pretty Woman to Chicago, this silverhaired charmer's come quite a long way, and made it look pretty effortless -- right down to kissing Shilpa Shetty and driving the moral police insane, there seems to be little Gere, who womankind looks at through nostalgia-tinted glasses, can't get away with.

The man's 60.

David Duchovny

Last updated on: March 18, 2010 12:53 IST
David Duchovny

The star of hit tv series X Files completely reinvented himself as he played Hank Moody, writer, procrastinator and helplessly serial fornicator on Californication.

The result? He's gotten a whole new generation of female fans across the world, and that must take the edge off turning 50 in August.

Denzel Washington

Last updated on: March 18, 2010 12:53 IST
Denzel Washington

They say he has the most geometrically proportionate features on any Hollywood face, and its hard to find a woman who doesn't look longingly on at Washington, an Oscar-winning actor best known for films like Malcolm X, Fallen and Training Day.

The ever-reliable actor turns 56 this December.

Harrison Ford

Last updated on: March 18, 2010 12:53 IST
Harrison Ford

He's been around awhile, and while Ford isn't in any way studly anymore, the actor gets lifelong brownie points for still being able to carry off that Indiana Jones fedora.

It takes some kinda special star to shrug off Star Wars and find success in another iconic franchise, but Ford delivers like a Mustang, and he's 67.

Jack Nicholson

Last updated on: March 18, 2010 12:53 IST
Jack Nicholson

Never conventionally the prettiest man in the room, the sunglass wearing superstar's reputation precedes him.

Men's magazines estimate his sexual conquests easily numbering in four figures, and the actor just keeps carrying on.

If you think the age of 72 slows him down, well, you don't know Jack.

Clint Eastwood

Last updated on: March 18, 2010 12:53 IST
Clint Eastwood

For a man known for playing the poncho-wearing Man With No Name, his last name's pretty darned iconic.

Clint is a man's man, rising from Sergio Leone's spaghetti western masterpieces to actioners like Dirty Harry to becoming one of America's most consistently applauded and prolific filmmakers.

And if you wonder whether this 79-year-old's still a tough guy, just watch Gran Torino.

Sean Connery

Last updated on: March 18, 2010 12:53 IST
Sean Connery

Still the sexiest man alive, this former secret agent built up a career of looking sensational and acting solidly, going on to collect numerous awards for acting -- including a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for The Untouchables -- and remains A-list and utterly droolworthy.

James Bond wouldn't have been James Bond if not for Sir Sean, who left us all shaken and stirred.