The Noah star, who is married to British actor Paul Bettany, insists she's not bothered about her looks as she approaches her 45th birthday in December (15) - and she wishes more middle-aged women felt the same.

"We equate beauty for women with youth, and that's sad," she tells the new issue of More magazine. "It's so hard for so many of us to appreciate the beauty of an older woman and to accept it in ourselves. I don't want to erase my history on my face.

"There's a window of time, a hump to get over, because it's inevitable.

"I love that Radiohead song Fake Plastic Trees: 'He used to do surgery for girls in the '80s, but gravity always wins'. It's certainly a dialogue I have with myself. And I don't judge; every woman has to make her own choice. But, for me, it's more beautiful to see the person."

The Oscar winner also takes time to coo about her husband of 12 years, who directed her as she played a homeless addict in gritty new film Shelter.

Calling the shoot very "organic", Connelly adds, "It was wonderful having that degree of trust."

But she has always been a big fan of her husband, ever since they worked together, alongside Russell Crowe, in A Beautiful Mind.

"(The things I fell in love with) are still the things I love (about him)," she gushes. "He's a very convivial, open, generous person. Very funny. Very respectful of women, sensitive to injustice."

The couple wed on New Year's Day (01Jan) 2003 and welcomed a son, Stellan, the same year. Their daughter Agnes Lark was born in May, 2011.