Am I asking too much here?

Ever since the post I wrote over the holidays expressing my frustration over the female to male formal-dress disparity -"the Lachey way," I called it- I've received an inordinate number of e-mails from male readers prompting me to, as one put it, "at least throw up some photos of styles you like and get a dialogue started."

So fine, here are a few pictures of Javier "takes my breath away" Bardem last night at the New York Film Critic's Circle Awards where he took home top prize for his performance in No Country for Old Men -- the film currently atop my must-see-before-Oscar-night list.

What do I like about his look?

For me, men's clothing, just like women's, is 90% fit, 10% swoon-worthy details. Here on Javier, I just love the fit of the jacket and shirt across his barrel chest. The trousers look slightly bunchy in the um, area of interest, but to be honest, after seeing these snaps, I don't really mind so much the snugness.

I suppose my "eh, he can get away with it" allowance is the equivalent of a man rationalizing a hot chick in a pleather push-up bustier top, isn't it?

Yikes.

Anyway, back to Javier's outfit. What I like about his choices are the strong but muted colors and cuts -- I like the gunmetal, I like the spread collar, the slim but not too slim cut of the pants, and of course, who wouldn't give it up for a man whose left eye looks as if it might've met with a Chuck Liddell uppercut? If he were out with a beautifully dressed woman, she would still garner the lion's share of attention (as she should), but he wouldn't look out of place or comparatively under-dressed by her side. That, to me, should be a man's goal. My kind of man's goal, anyway.

Now whether the cuff of those pants hits his shoes just right or the thread-count of his suit is season-appropriate are other issues altogether; on those kinds of specific distinctions I haven't the slightest clue, nor any helpful insight.

So I guess what I'm saying to the men out there who are looking for an ensured second date with me or with any other picky Pollyanna (cue my Kristin Wiig in Knocked Up voice) is make your body look like Javier's, go to a store with one of these pictures, show it to a salesman, buy this exact suit and look just like him.

More of my ideal below: