Page 54 - Seniorstoday July 2022 Issue
P. 54
Movies
Golden Oldies
Deepa Gahlot lists her 10 favourite “Golden Oldies”, which rise above
the usual ailing and depressing geriatric narrative, stereotypical of oldie
movies
An actor had once commented that if it loneliness, ill health and cruelties of
weren’t for Amitabh Bachchan, the Hindi apathetic children. God forbid if they seek
film industry would not be making movies romance or, gosh, a sex life!
with senior actors in leading roles. No Which is why a new film, Good Luck
matter how fit or youthful they may be, To You, Leo Grande, is winning raves
once they cross 60, most lead actors (except because it has a retired, widowed school
Dev Anand!) are moved to character roles, teacher, played by Emma Thompson,
while the projects revolve around the seeking the sexual pleasure she never did
young hero. When Anil Kapoor, always in her 35-year marriage with an indifferent
hailed for his ageless appearance, agreed husband, by hiring a young sex worker
to play daddy roles, what chance did the (Daryl McCormack). She has to overcome
other have? Women do not even have to hit her shame and embarrassment, before she
the 60-year mark to be relegated to playing discovers that desire is not a sin.
mother, sometimes to actors older than In the US, the media has labelled as
them. ‘geri-action’ the spate of movies—like The
In any case, most Hindi films look at Expendables franchise-- with 60 plus stars.
senior actors pretty much the way society The quintet of Sylvester Stallone, Arnold
does—spend your old age doing pooja- Shwarzenegger, Harrison Ford, Liam
paath, looking after grandkids and minding Neeson and Bruce Willis still sell tickets,
the blood pressure, is what is expected the last star, however, has had to bow out,
of them. Which is why so many films due to ill health. Hardly any female star
about older people have them suffering over 60 makes it to the badass list, though
54
