# Maggie Gyllenhaal - attractive, or am I missing something? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 19, 2010, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maggie-gyllenhaal-attractive-or-am-i-missing-something/543800 "2010-06-19T19:40:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![GargoyleWB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gargoylewb/32/199_2.png) [@GargoyleWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GargoyleWB)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2010, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maggie-gyllenhaal-attractive-or-am-i-missing-something/543800/101 "2010-06-22T18:42:46Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > I don’t understand proper posture being a criteria of attractiveness in women, In men, it expresses confidence, but this is not valued as much in women. For me, good posture correlates strongly with physical health and, to a lesser extent, youth. In Maggie’s case, her poor bent posture instantly associates in my mind “smoker”, “out of shape”, “crash diet”, “illness” all of which may or may not be true. It also makes her look 20 years older than she is. All of these qualities were actually considered attractive from a 1930s Hollywood frame of reference (slouchy raspy-voiced time-worn chain-smokers), so maybe people find her attractive because it evokes the old classic perceptions of past beauties? ---
**Author:** ![kathmandu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f8ce5/32.png) [@kathmandu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kathmandu)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2010, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maggie-gyllenhaal-attractive-or-am-i-missing-something/543800/102 "2010-06-22T23:38:40Z")
I thought she was very attractive in Secretary. I thought she was very unattractive in Dark Knight, which was amplified by the fact that her beauty was supposed to be often remarked upon in Gotham. She just wasn’t right for the part - she wasn’t quite attractive enough and seemed a bit gawky and awkward for a character that was supposed to be very competent and self assured. ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2010, 11:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maggie-gyllenhaal-attractive-or-am-i-missing-something/543800/103 "2010-06-24T11:12:39Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > I think she’s hot. She’s got a nerd-girl hotness that’s appealing to me. Ditto. She reminds me a lot of my girlfriend who (I hope never reads this) is by no means conventionally cute, but has an appealing and quirky look, a cute “plainness” if you will. Oh, and a great smile. ---
**Author:** ![Private\_Bin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c0e974/32.png) [@Private\_Bin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Private_Bin)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2010, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maggie-gyllenhaal-attractive-or-am-i-missing-something/543800/104 "2010-06-24T16:52:48Z")
She is the quintessential Hot Librarian to me. \*Very \*appealing. Also, this > [@GargoyleWB](#): > > For me, good posture correlates strongly with physical health and, to a lesser extent, youth. In Maggie’s case, her poor bent posture instantly associates in my mind “smoker”, “out of shape”, “crash diet”, “illness” all of which may or may not be true. It also makes her look 20 years older than she is. > > All of these qualities were actually considered attractive from a 1930s Hollywood frame of reference (slouchy raspy-voiced time-worn chain-smokers), so maybe people find her attractive because it evokes the old classic perceptions of past beauties? ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2010, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maggie-gyllenhaal-attractive-or-am-i-missing-something/543800/105 "2010-07-19T17:23:44Z")
I’m not a fan, but I have to say, she looks pretty good in the trailer for the next _Nanny McPhee_ movie: [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pYk9PJ7P36E](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pYk9PJ7P36E) ---
**Author:** ![Loisseau](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/2bfe46/32.png) [@Loisseau](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loisseau)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2010, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maggie-gyllenhaal-attractive-or-am-i-missing-something/543800/106 "2010-07-20T20:00:37Z")
She has a relaxed smokey sensuality. Check this site out for examples: [Maggie Gyllenhaal](http://www.celebritymoviearchive.com/tour/name.php/1287) Warning: NSFW. ---
**Author:** ![rivulus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/839c29/32.png) [@rivulus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rivulus)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maggie-gyllenhaal-attractive-or-am-i-missing-something/543800/107 "2010-07-21T03:12:01Z")
> [@Lunchy](#): > > I don’t find her attractive. My friends don’t find her attractive either. That said, she would have been fine in Dark Knight if The Joker didn’t call her beautiful 3 times. It almost felt forced. To me she looked like a shaved rat. Heh. Reminds me of hearing someone in an opera sing about how young, tiny, delicate, and beautiful the heroine is – when you’re actually witnessing a solidly healthy 40-ish soprano belting out high notes above a 100 piece orchestra. Cognitive dissonance at its finest. Of course, you expect to have to suspend disbelief at the opera. But movies usually go for more realistic casting (the fantastic comic book plot line notwithstanding). So, I agree – the miscasting of Maggie in this role distracting. ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maggie-gyllenhaal-attractive-or-am-i-missing-something/543800/108 "2010-07-21T17:11:07Z")
> [@SaharaTea](#): > > I wouldn’t call her bombshell sexy, but I think she’s attractive in an unusual kind of way. > > I’m not terribly impressed with her acting though. I thought she was miscast in both _The Dark Knight_ and _Crazy Heart_. This. Except I never saw TDK. . ---
**Author:** ![mskarpelos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e79b87/32.png) [@mskarpelos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mskarpelos)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2013, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maggie-gyllenhaal-attractive-or-am-i-missing-something/543800/109 "2013-01-07T23:11:31Z")
Conceding that beauty standards are very much culturally induced and change drastically over time (just look at prints of Titian nudes from the 16th century), I don’t think anyone would describe Gyllenhaal as beautiful by contemporary standards. Nevertheless, I find her extremely attractive. She’s tall; she has a wonderful smile; she’s smart and quirky and has just enough of an edge to her to make her irresistible. What I or anyone else thinks, however, doesn’t really matter. She’s been married to the actor Peter Sarsgaard since 2009 and they have two children together. At this point, only Sarsgaard’s opinion counts. ---
**Author:** ![Drunky\_Smurf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drunky_smurf/32/449_2.png) [@Drunky\_Smurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drunky_Smurf)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2013, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maggie-gyllenhaal-attractive-or-am-i-missing-something/543800/110 "2013-01-07T23:23:25Z")
I vote ugly zombie bitch. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2013, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maggie-gyllenhaal-attractive-or-am-i-missing-something/543800/111 "2013-01-08T02:27:42Z")
> [@VinylTurnip](#): > > I agree wholeheartedly with the OP, and wondered if I were the only one. Who knew—before poor Maggie came slouching along—that posture would be something I’d even notice, let alone find an important element of a woman’s attractiveness? > > And yet, I look at her sometimes and want to scream “_SIT UP STRAIGHT_!” Poor posture is one of my top five turn-offs. (I’m not sure what the other 4 are, but poor posture is definitely in the top 5.) ETA: And yet, I thought she was both awesome and hot in _Stranger Than Fiction_ and a good choice to replace Katie Holmes in _The Dark Knight_. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2013, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maggie-gyllenhaal-attractive-or-am-i-missing-something/543800/112 "2013-01-08T02:47:41Z")
She was so sexy in **Crazy Heart** that I nearly couldn’t stand it. ---
**Author:** ![singular1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ba9def/32.png) [@singular1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/singular1)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2013, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maggie-gyllenhaal-attractive-or-am-i-missing-something/543800/113 "2013-01-08T02:53:54Z")
I’ve always gotten a stuck up vibe from her. Last year she did a tremendously awkward phone interview with Kevin & Bean and came across as even more insufferable than I’d imagined. I felt vindicated when the next days’ broadcast began with a list of all the awful things that day’s schedule held, topped with “& the best thing about today? No Maggie Gylynnhal.” I couldn’t agree more. Condescending slumpy bitch. ---
**Author:** ![romadea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b4bc9f/32.png) [@romadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/romadea)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2013, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maggie-gyllenhaal-attractive-or-am-i-missing-something/543800/114 "2013-01-08T03:12:26Z")
> [@Stink Fish Pot](#): > > FTR, other than that short little imp connected to her arm, I find Katie Holmes much more attractive than Maggie “ **?** ” Really?? I think Suri’s the cutest thing about Katie Holmes. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2013, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maggie-gyllenhaal-attractive-or-am-i-missing-something/543800/115 "2013-01-08T04:31:14Z")
Zombie thread, but Maggie Gyllenhaal is oh, so hot, worth reiterating over and over again to the point of redundancy. ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2013, 8:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maggie-gyllenhaal-attractive-or-am-i-missing-something/543800/116 "2013-01-08T08:59:50Z")
I prefer younger women and Ms. Gyllenhaal is already 2.5 years older than when OP complained. :o But the thread reminded me of Elisa Moolecherry [whose still pictures](http://www.google.com/search?q=Moolecherry+Elisa&hl=en&safe=off&tbo=u&tbm=isch&source=univ&sa=X&ei=INzrUOCWF8mjkQXg34CQAw&ved=0CDwQsAQ&biw=1241&bih=606) aren’t impressive, but who captivates me with her facial expressions [when she acts](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CarrZXAHR_g#t=188). ---
**Author:** ![Toxylon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f05b48/32.png) [@Toxylon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Toxylon)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2013, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maggie-gyllenhaal-attractive-or-am-i-missing-something/543800/117 "2013-01-08T17:12:16Z")
Thirding **GargoyleWB** and **Snowboarder Bo** , good posture is extremely important to me, representing health and desirability on a deep, instinctual level, while poor posture is equally offputting. Aside from that, Maggie Gyllenhaal is zombie ugly, as far as past or present Hollywood actresses go. I think she’s not even average among any random set of healthy, lean, 20 - 45 y.o. women. She looks like Droopy the Dog. A smoker’s voice is a huge turnoff, too. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2013, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maggie-gyllenhaal-attractive-or-am-i-missing-something/543800/118 "2013-01-08T17:17:29Z")
She’s no Kim Basinger. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2013, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maggie-gyllenhaal-attractive-or-am-i-missing-something/543800/119 "2013-01-08T23:14:29Z")
“Slumpy.” Heh. She is awfully slumpy. ---
**Author:** ![JKilez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e5b9ba/32.png) [@JKilez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKilez)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2013, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maggie-gyllenhaal-attractive-or-am-i-missing-something/543800/120 "2013-01-09T00:01:45Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > Poor posture is one of my top five turn-offs. (I’m not sure what the other 4 are, but poor posture is definitely in the top 5.) Yes! This is such a big part of it. She could be kind quirky cute, but she has that hunched back, rolled shoulders, and droopy posture. **Cat Whisperer** nailed it with “slumpy”. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maggie-gyllenhaal-attractive-or-am-i-missing-something/543800.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maggie-gyllenhaal-attractive-or-am-i-missing-something/543800.md?page=7)