Daniel Craig as James Bond in Quantum of Solace (2008)

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Daniel Craig as James Bond, rogue British government agent

La Paz, Bolivia, August 2008

Film: Quantum of Solace
Release Date: October 31, 2008
Director: Marc Forster
Costume Designer: Louise Frogley

Background

The last post found us sailing down to Bolivia with the Sundance Kid, so let’s hang around and see what kind of trouble James Bond gets into in the same country for the 00-7th of April.

Exactly 100 years after Butch and Sundance met their fate in San Vicente, Daniel Craig’s rogue James Bond arrived in the country with his former MI6 handler Mathis (Giancarlo Giannini), where they are immediately interrupted by the efficient Agent Fields (Gemma Arterton, who recently expressed that she wouldn’t take the role if offered it today).

What’d He Wear?

Bond evidently picked up some fresh Tom Ford suits after his visit to Mathis’ Italian villa, sporting the first as his traveling suit as they fly across the Atlantic. 007 looks sharp as he alights in the La Paz airport, wearing his new Tom Ford suit in cool dark brown mohair tonic.

Distinctive for its shiny iridescence created by its two-colored warp and weft, mohair tonic enjoyed the greatest popularity during the 1960s mod scene, making it an appropriate suiting for Daniel Craig’s heritage-focused interpretation of James Bond.

Teachers on sabbatical, eh?

The details of the suit jacket are consistent with the other Tom Ford “Regency” cut jackets that Craig wears in Quantum of Solace; the front is single-breasted with medium-width notch lapels that roll over the top of the jacket’s three-button front. This 3-roll-2 button stance is perfectly situated with the middle button over the waist, but the lower trouser rise and the long tie create the undesired effect of the tie substantially poking out under the buttoned jacket.

Somehow, Bond looks better after a transatlantic six-martini flight than most people do after leaving their house for work in the morning. (Mathis, on the other hand, looks much more relatable.)

Bond’s pick-stitched jacket has a chest chest and suppressed waist with a trim cut that flatters better Craig than the much slimmer fit of his later Tom Ford suits in Skyfall. The natural “pagoda” shoulders with roped sleeveheads emphasize Craig’s concave shoulder lines. He wears a white linen pocket square neatly folded in the jacket’s curved “barchetta” breast pocket, and the hip pockets are straight and flapped with a ticket pocket on the right side adding an extra dash of British detail. The double back vents rise high, approximately 10″.

All of Bond’s Tom Ford suits in Quantum of Solace have functioning 5-button cuffs with the buttonhole closest to the wrist cut longer and always left undone, a rakish way for Bond to signal his bespoke tailoring to those who would notice.

The flat front trousers have a fashionably low rise with side adjusters revived from the era of Sean Connery and early Roger Moore, although Craig’s adjusters are slide-buckle tabs rather than buttoned “Daks top” adjusters. The waistband is extended across the front with a concealed hook closure on a squared tab.

The side pockets follow the slightly curved side seams, and the jetted back pockets close with a button. The straight-leg trousers fit closely to Craig and are finished at the bottom with cuffs (turn-ups).

Images grabbed of Daniel Craig on set show more details of his trousers and highlight the shiny aspects of the mohair fabric. This film also marked the return of side adjusters on Bond’s trousers, a Connery-era detail that had been replaced by belts during Roger Moore’s tenure.

Other than his first appearance in the pinstripe suit (meant to evoke the three-piece suit from the Casino Royale finale), Bond wears exclusively white poplin dress shirts throughout Quantum of Solace, all from Tom Ford, and styled with a large semi-spread collar, front placket, and two back darts. The double (French) cuffs in this scene are worn with gold cluster cuff links that nicely mirror the earth-toned iridescence of both his suit and tie.

Also from Tom Ford, Bond’s silk tie is a micro-grid of dark brown and light tan squares that look solidly taupe from a distance and is tied in a Windsor knot… ostensibly with apologies to Ian Fleming.

Bond knocks back his sixth in-flight martini.

Bargain Bonds may find solace of their own with this “houndstooth” silk tie from Vincenzo Boretti that offers a similar effect for only $17.

Brown shoes are traditionally a safe bet when sporting a brown suit, but Bond eschews this comfortable choice in favor of the same black calf full leather Church’s Philip oxfords that he wears with all of his suits in Quantum of Solace. These six-eyelet oxfords have a perforated cap-toe, comfortable suede lining, and oak bark soles. You can find more information about the Church’s Philip at James Bond Lifestyle.

(Left) Daniel Craig on set.
(Center) Church’s Philip oxfords, as worn by Daniel Craig in Quantum of Solace.
(Right) Bond and Fields are escorted to their room.

The sun hits Bond’s face as he emerges from the La Paz airport, but he’s thoughtfully prepared for the situation with a pair of matte rhodium-framed Tom Ford FT108 aviator sunglasses, the same shades he rocked with a dressed-down cardigan and desert boots at Mathis’ villa in the previous scene.

More information about these Italian-made sunglasses can be found at James Bond Lifestyle or on the Christie’s auction page when Craig’s actual screen-worn sunglasses were sold for £23,750 in 2012.

Fields should have rethought her cover story when Bond arrived wearing Tom Ford sunglasses and an Omega watch…not to mention the suit itself.

Bond’s wristwatch is the same Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean 600m Co-Axial Chronometer 2201.50.00 that he wears throughout Quantum of Solace with a stainless steel 42mm case and deployment-clasp link bracelet. The round dial is black with a 3:00 date window and luminous hour markers and hands. The specific number of Bond’s watch, which was auctioned by Christie’s in 2012 for £34,850, is #81087613. Given that he spends most of his time in Quantum of Solace gone rogue, it makes sense that he would wear this watch exclusively without Q Branch outfitting him with alternatives.

For a great analysis and breakdown of Craig’s suit in this scene, visit Matt Spaiser’s blog The Suits of James Bond.

How to Get the Look

James Bond revives a bold vintage fad with his mohair tonic suit in muted brown, setting the gold standard for travel attire and easing his own path for post-flight stationary-and-Bollinger seductions.

• Dark brown mohair tonic Tom Ford “Regency” suit:
  • Single-breasted 3-roll-2 button jacket with notch lapels, curved “barchetta” breast pocket, straight flapped hip pockets with ticket pocket, functional 5-button cuffs, and long double vents
  • Flat front low-rise trousers with buckle side-adjusters, curved-seam side pockets, button-through jetted back pockets, and turn-ups/cuffs
• White poplin Tom Ford dress shirt with large semi-spread collar, front placket, and double/French cuffs
  • Gold cluster cuff links
• Brown two-tone mini-grid silk Tom Ford tie
• Black calf leather Church’s Philip six-eyelet perforated cap-toe oxfords/balmorals
• Black dress socks
• Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean 600m Co-Axial Chronometer stainless steel wristwatch with steel bracelet, black face, and black bezel
• Tom Ford FT108 aviator sunglasses with semi matte rhodium frame, black temple tips, and smoke blue 19V lenses

Do Yourself a Favor and…

Buy the movie.

The Quote

Hello. We’re teachers on sabbatical and we’ve just won the lottery.

Footnote

Mohair tonic is a very difficult suiting to track down these days. This three-ply “Tonic Ginger” suit from Jump the Gun incorporates the color and basic style of Bond’s Bolivia suit in Quantum of Solace with mod-influenced details like covered buttons and a high-buttoning short jacket.

Daniel Craig as James Bond in Spectre (2015).

Vitals

Daniel Craig as James Bond, British government agent

Morocco, November 2015

Film: Spectre
Release Date: October 25, 2015
Director: Sam Mendes
Costume Designer: Jany Temime

WARNING! Spoilers ahead!

Background

For Ian Fleming’s upcoming birthday on May 28, BAMF Style is taking a look at a navy suit worn by Daniel Craig in Spectre… the closest approach to Fleming’s outlined sartorial vision for James Bond’s business dress since Sean Connery in You Only Live Twice (link).

Through the course of his Bond books, Fleming had often stipulated a dark blue suit of tropical weight worsted or serge, worn with a white short-sleeved shirt, black knit tie, and black moccasin slip-ons. The filmmakers discarded the exact details (like Fleming’s preferred short-sleeve shirts) but adapted the outfit’s simplicity into the agent’s on-screen style.

More than 60 years after Fleming drafted his first manuscript for Casino Royale on a typewriter in Jamaica, Daniel Craig’s James Bond allows himself to be lured into a trap set by his oldest enemy, Ernst Stavro Blofeld (Christoph Waltz), who reveals himself to be “the author of all your pain.”

What’d He Wear?

In the grand tradition of Bond villains dating back to Dr. No, Blofeld lays out a luxurious tailored suit for 007 to wear while in captivity. Much has been written about this navy sharkskin wool suit, which was also featured on much of the film’s promotional artwork, including an excellent post at The Suits of James Bond where Matt Spaiser digitally “corrects” the tight fit.

Blofeld shows quite the depth of his knowledge of Bond by providing for him the same “O’Connor” model as several other Tom Ford suits that Bond wears in Spectre. The simple and elegant combination of a solid navy suit, white shirt, and dark tie is likely Fleming-inspired… but the ill-fitting tightness is straight out of Jany Temime’s tenure as the franchise costume director.

The “back-to-the-roots” sartorial approach is augmented by the sharkskin suiting, a lighter weight wool softly woven in two tones of blue yarn to deliver a vivid shine accentuated by an action-packed afternoon under the Moroccan sun. (It’s a much different look than the admittedly more desert-suitable brown linen jacket and odd trousers he wore for his arrival.)

The single-breasted navy sharkskin suit jacket has a 3-roll-2 button front as the notch lapels roll over the top button, presenting like a two-button jacket. The lapels themselves are narrow with high gorges and a long, double-stitched buttonhole on the left lapel. The shoulders are narrow with roped sleeveheads.

The “Blofeld intentionally gave Bond a shrunken suit” theory would hold more water if this suit didn’t share its fit issues with Bond’s own suits in Spectre.

Craig on set, with small trousers and a large weapon.

Bond wears a white pocket square (Blofeld thinks of everything!) in the jacket’s curved “barchetta” breast pocket. The jacket also has straight flapped hip pockets, a single back vent, and functioning four-button cuffs that Bond wears with the lowest button undone.

Oy vey, these trousers!

The low rise and high break work together to create a shrunken pant that looks rather ridiculous both with and without the jacket. When the jacket is buttoned, the waistband’s positioning a few inches below the jacket’s buttoning point reveals an unsightly white “triangle” of shirt fabric. The cuffed bottoms break high over the tops of his shoes.

Fit aside, the trousers are detailed elegantly with buckle-tab side adjusters in lieu of a belt or braces. The squared waistband extends across the fly for a hidden hook closure, disrupting the gig line.

Each side pocket is placed along its respective side seam as it gently curves toward the front of the trousers, and both jetted back pockets close with a button.

It’s always nice for a gentleman to remove his jacket when on a date with a lady… however, it’s preferred that he lend said jacket to said lady rather than to ditch it for an assault rifle and use it to shoot up a desert terrorist compound. To each their own, I suppose.

It’s a shame that the suit fits so poorly, as I rather enjoy the shirt and tie worn beneath it. The shirt is one of the standard Tom Ford dress shirts in white cotton poplin that Craig wears throughout Spectre, furnished with a point collar, front placket, and double side darts on the back.

The double (French) cuffs are worn with cuff links, also from Tom Ford, that coordinate with the outfit’s simplicity. They are silver discs with blue enamel-filled centers that call out the navy tones of the suit and tie.

Bond must be yearning for the good old days where villains at least had the decency to serve him a martini before subjecting him to torture.

The dark navy silk tie, also from Tom Ford, is a few shades darker than the solid navy tie Craig wore with his blue Prince of Wales check suit in the opening scene. At 3″ wide, the tie is a slight wider than the narrow lapels of his suit.

The Bond franchise’s newfound association with Crockett & Jones, which began in the previous film with Skyfall, paid off during this scene in Spectre when Craig’s black calf Norwich model derbies get plenty of screen time once he’s hooked up to Blofeld’s torture device. The angle showcases not only the straight toe cap and the five-eyelet open lacing, but also the Dainite studded rubber soles. They are the same type of shoes that he wore with the blue Prince of Wales check suit, and he again wears them with solid black socks.

More information about Bond’s Crockett & Jones Norwich derby shoes can be found at James Bond Lifestyle.

Blofeld springs for the best when outfitting his prisoners, unlike Le Chiffre.

At the outset of the scene, Bond shows up wearing a pair of Tom Ford Henry Vintage Wayfarer FT0248 sunglasses with “Havana” tortoise and dark metal browline-style frames and gray lenses (color code 52A). As of May 2017, you could still pick up a similar pair for less than $200 on Amazon. You can also always read more at James Bond Lifestyle.

Thankfully, these are the same pair that he wore when he was picked up by Blofeld’s henchmen, as it would be simply too much to believe that Blofeld sprung to outfit Bond with designer sunglasses in addition to a pair of £390 shoes.

Bond and Dr. Madeleine Swann (Léa Seydoux) are greeted by a Kingsman-wannabe and two glasses of champagne.

One of the most heralded product tie-ins with Spectre was Bond’s watch, a steel Omega Seamaster 300 chronometer on a true NATO strap designed to be reminiscent of the striped strap that Sean Connery wore with his Rolex Submariner in Goldfinger and Thunderball. The watch, powered by Omega’s Master Co-Axial calibre 8400 movement, has a 41mm brushed and polished stainless steel case. The bi-directional black ceramic bezel is marked at each hour from 1 to 0 (0 instead of 12) and coordinates with the black dial housed under the sapphire crystal.

The five-striped nylon strap alternates in black and gray like a true NATO strap and can be purchased separately from Omega in two different widths. Of course, that could be costly, so retailers like CheapestNatoStraps put their money where their mouth is with a wide variety of straps available for around $7.95, including the classic black-and-gray Spectre stripe model (link). You can also find affordable strap alternatives on Amazon.

Now why would Blofeld let him keep his watch?

In addition to the standard 233.32.41.21.01.001 Seamaster (link), Omega’s site has a page dedicated to the SPECTRE Limited Edition model (link).

The Omega Seamaster 300 SPECTRE Limited Edition was sold in a limited number of 7,007 pieces (of course) and is still marketed for $7,500 on Omega’s site. You can read more about it at James Bond Lifestyle.

Theatrical poster for Spectre (2015) featuring Daniel Craig (in this navy sharkskin suit) and Léa Seydoux

How to Get the Look

Fit issues aside, Daniel Craig’s Bond sports an elegant two-color ensemble that recalls elements of Ian Fleming’s sartorial formula for his face-off against a classic enemy.

• Navy blue “sharkskin” woven pick wool Tom Ford “O’Connor” tailored suit:
  • Single-breasted 3-roll-2 button suit jacket with narrow notch lapels, curved “barchetta” breast pocket, slanted flapped hip pockets, 4-button functional cuffs, and single vent
  • Flat front medium-low rise trousers with extended front waist tab, slide-buckle side adjusters, curved on-seam side pockets, button-through jetted back pockets, and turn-ups/cuffs with short break
• White cotton poplin Tom Ford dress shirt with point collar, front placket, back side darts, and double/French cuffs
  • Blue-filled silver disc Tom Ford cuff links
• Dark navy silk Tom Ford tie
• Black calf Crockett & Jones “Norwich” 5-eyelet cap-toe derby shoes with Dainite studded rubber soles
• Black dress socks
• Omega Seamaster 300 SPECTRE Limited Edition (233.32.41.21.01.001) stainless steel wristwatch with black dial (and “lollipop” seconds hand) on black-and-gray striped NATO strap

The Gun

Despite traditional elements like the navy suit a la Fleming and the return of Blofeld, Bond isn’t fighting off baddies with his usual Walther PPK as his weapon of choice. Instead, he manages to get his hands on a SA vz. 58 Compact assault carbine, made by Czech Small Arms.

Given the situation, this is an upgrade from the seven-shot PPK.

This isn’t the first time James Bond has wielded a member of the SA vz.5 8 weapons family. In Octopussy, the late Roger Moore scored some extra cool points for his Bond when he too disarmed a guard of his rifle – that time, a full-size SA vz. 58 V – and fired at Kamal Khan’s henchmen while sliding down a banister (check it out!).

The SA vz. 58 was designed in 1956 and entered service by the end of the decade, produced by Česká zbrojovka Uherský Brod. Though it shares the 7.62x39mm cartridge and some cosmetic similarities with the AK-47 and its variants, it’s a much different weapon that shares no interchangeable parts with the Kalashnikov series. The fixed stock (SA vz. 58 P) and folding stock (SA vz. 58 V) full-length models both weigh in around 6.4 pounds with 15.4″ barrels.

The SA vz. 58 Carbine and SA vz. 58 Compact are shorter-barreled variants made by Czech Small Arms (rather than Česká zbrojovka) that shorten the barrel down to 11.8″ on the Carbine model and 7.5″ on the Compact model. Both still use 30-round magazines like the full-size SA vz. 58 rifles, but can also be chambered for the 5.56x45mm NATO cartridge in addition to the 7.62mm. In Spectre, Bond appears to wield a 7.5″-barreled Compact model chambered in 5.56x45mm NATO.

Do Yourself a Favor and…

Buy the movie.

The Quote

Tempus fugit.

Footnote

This appears to be the same suit that Daniel Craig wears for the “gunbarrel sequence” at the beginning of Spectre.

Bang!

Daniel Craig as James Bond in Casino Royale (2006)

Vitals

Daniel Craig as James Bond, British secret agent

Lake Como, Italy, August 2006

Film: Casino Royale
Release Date: November 14, 2006
Director: Martin Campbell
Costume Designer: Lindy Hemming

Background

The name is Bond… James Bond.

After more than two hours of anticipation, Daniel Craig finally delivered the words that 007 fans were waiting to hear. 007 had embarked on an adventure with more ups and downs – both emotional and physical – than we’re used to seeing with our sophisticated hero, and Casino Royale reintroduced audiences to a character with an impact similar to the initial book’s release 65 years ago this month. I know that the moment I left the theater that Thanksgiving weekend in 2006, I had to resist the impulse to buy another ticket and head back in for a second viewing.

For the 00-7th of April, let’s celebrate not only a stylish and classic springtime business look but also the 65th anniversary of the publication of Casino Royale, Ian Fleming’s first novel and the spark that so ferociously lit the James Bond franchise when it shelves on April 13, 1953.

What’d He Wear?

If Casino Royale served as a reboot for the James Bond franchise, we knew the transformation was complete in the end scene as 007 stands over the fallen villain, beautifully attired in a sharp tailored suit, offering up his trademark introduction as a brassy orchestration of that now-famous theme song screamed into the scene.

Casino Royale continued a few traditions of the Pierce Brosnan era, including the sharp Brioni suits. This was the last Brioni suit that Daniel Craig would wear on screen as James Bond, as Tom Ford would take the reigns in the following adventure, Quantum of Solace (2008). Compare this suit’s fuller silhouette to the tighter suits seen in Skyfall (2012) if you want a primer on just how much fashion can change in less than a decade.

A fine detailed description of the the suit itself, as well as an exploration of the context for Mr. Bond choosing to wear it, can be found at the seminal home of all things sartorially related to 007, The Suits of James Bond by Matt Spaiser. The suiting is a dark navy wool with double sets of blue-gray stripes creating a subtle pinstripe effect described as “track stripes” on The Suits of James Bond.

Bond stands over Mr. White with Vesper’s “crystal white” Sony Ericsson M600i cell phone… a “smoking gun” in each hand, if you will.

The single-breasted jacket has notch lapels that roll to a three-button front. Little is seen of the suit jacket on screen, but set photos prove that it has flapped hip pockets, a single back vent, and “kissing” four-button cuffs. The six-button waistcoat (or vest) makes this Daniel Craig’s first three-piece suit as 007, and he correctly leaves the lowest button unfastened. It has welted pockets and a notched bottom.

Bond sticks to blue for his shirt and tie, an appropriately flattering color for Daniel Craig given the cinematic impact of the scene that calls for him to look his best. The light blue cotton poplin shirt is also from Brioni with a high semi-spread collar, front placket, and double (French) cuffs likely worn with a set of silver-toned S.T. Dupont cuff links. His tie is micro-woven in blue and white silk, tied in a substantial four-in-hand knot. The “Royale Tie” by Magnoli Clothiers is likely meant to replicate this particular tie, described as “a repeating pattern of rounded diamonds produced by light blue threads on a dark blue background.”

“The name’s Bond… James Bond.”

The flat front trousers are shaped with darts around the hips with a wide, straight fit through the legs consistent with mid-2000s styling. They’re almost certainly worn with a belt like all of Daniel Craig’s other business suits in Casino Royale, even though purists would advice forgoing a belt with a waistcoat. The trousers have slanted “quarter-top” side pockets and narrow turn-ups (cuffs).

Bond wears the same John Lobb Luffield plain-toe derby shoes that he wore earlier with his other business suits and his tuxedo with black “museum calf” leather uppers and two lace eyelets. You can read more about these shoes at James Bond Lifestyle.

Bond is carefully not to step on the wounded Mr. White after shooting him down on the steps of Lake Gaeta.

While this brave new Bond is no longer wearing his suits “with such disdain”, as Vesper had noticed on the train, he is still outfitted with his signature Omega Seamaster that had caught her eye during the same conversation. That scene marked the first appearance of the blue-dialed Seamaster Professional Diver after Bond graduated from the sportier rubber-strapped Seamaster Planet Ocean “Big Size” that he had worn in earlier scenes. The Omega Seamaster Professional Diver, model 2220.80.00, has a 41mm stainless steel case with a blue dial with a 3:00 date window, a blue rotating bezel, and a stainless link bracelet. You can read more about this watch at James Bond Lifestyle.

A Theory…

Daniel Craig on location in Italy, suited up and suitably armed as James Bond in Casino Royale (2006). Photo by Greg Williams.

007 fans, particularly those with sartorially inclined eyes, will notice that we leave James Bond at the end of Casino Royale sporting this navy striped three-piece Brioni suit. The action picks up immediately where we left off in Quantum of Solace with Bond wearing… a navy striped two-piece suit from Tom Ford? The obvious reasoning for the difference is the change from costume designer Lindy Hemming working with Brioni in Casino Royale to costume designer Louise Frogley working with Tom Ford in Quantum of Solace, with the latter interpreting this finale suit and putting her own expert – some may even say improved – touches on the ensemble.

Personally, I prefer to imagine the Lake Como confrontation occurring two years after getting the tip from the late Vesper’s cell phone in Casino Royale. Bond ends a two-year manhunt when he tracks Mr. White to the Lake Como house, shoots him, and then spends about 24 hours interrogating him on his own. Perhaps in that time, Bond changed into the Tom Ford suit we see in Quantum of Solace, allowing time for M and Craig Mitchell to set up a safe house in Siena… and also allowing time for Quantum goons to find out their boss was in distress and to track Bond down.

Perhaps I’m overthinking things, but it’s not beyond Bond to pack several similar suits for one mission… think From Russia With Love and the five different gray-toned suits that 007 took with him to Istanbul.

How to Get the Look

Daniel Craig as James Bond, behind the scenes of Casino Royale (2006)

It’s only one shot, but it’s a memorable one as Daniel Craig fully assumes his cinematic identity as James Bond. No less than a tailored navy pinstripe three-piece suit would do the trick.

• Navy pinstripe wool Italian-tailored suit from Brioni:
  • Single-breasted 3-button jacket with notch lapels, welted breast pocket, straight flapped hip pockets, single back vent, and 4-button cuffs
  • Single-breasted 6-button waistcoat with two welted pockets and notched bottom
  • Flat front trousers with belt loops, slanted side pockets, and turn-ups/cuffs
• Light blue cotton poplin Brioni dress shirt with semi-spread collar, front placket, and double/French cuffs
  • Silver-toned cuff links
• Blue-and-white woven silk tie
• Black calf leather two-eyelet John Lobb Luffield plain-toe derby shoes
• Dark navy dress socks
• Omega Seamaster Professional Diver 2220.80.00 dive watch with stainless steel 41mm case, blue dial (with 3:00 date window), blue rotating bezel, and stainless link bracelet

To read more about this particular suit, do visit the comprehensive analysis at The Suits of James Bond.

The Gun

For a scene meant to introduce Daniel Craig in the traditional image of a confident, well-suited James Bond, you’d expect 007 to be carrying his signature sidearm, the Walther PPK or even his more modern Walther P99. Instead, Mr. Bond is packing heavy heat in the form of a Heckler & Koch UMP submachine gun.

German for “Universale Maschinenpistole”, the UMP was introduced in 1999 to supplement the aging MP5 submachine gun that you’ve seen in countless action movies and video games for the last quarter of a century. The UMP fills a unique niche in the firearms market as a submachine gun chambered to fire higher caliber pistol cartridges like the .40 S&W and .45 ACP in addition to the standard 9×19 mm Parabellum.

In Casino Royale, Bond is clearly armed with the UMP9 based on the curved “banana”-style magazine as opposed to the straight box magazines of the UMP40 and UMP45. Bond’s UMP9 is also fitted with a suppressor to conceal the sound of the shot he fires to wound Mr. White in the leg.

Behind-the-scenes shot of Daniel Craig in Persol sunglasses and Brioni suit, brandishing 007’s H&K UMP-9 submachine gun. (Photo by Greg Williams)

Although the suit, shirt, and tie change when the story picks up in Quantum of Solace, at least 007 is still armed with the same weapon, albeit with the suppressor removed for easier combat while speeding his car through the windy mountainous roads between Lake Como and Siena.

Do Yourself a Favor and…

Check out the movie… and the book, which celebrates its 65th year in publication!

The Quote

We need to talk.

Footnote

They don’t appear in this scene, but the tortoise sunglasses that Daniel Craig wears in the above behind-the-scenes photo with the H&K UMP-9 are the same Persol 2720 shades that he wore with his two-piece navy suit when receiving his new Aston Martin in Montenegro.

Daniel Craig as James Bond, exiting an Aston Martin DB10 prototype in Spectre (2015)

Vitals

Daniel Craig as James Bond, British government agent

Rome, November 2015

Film: Spectre
Release Date: October 25, 2015
Director: Sam Mendes
Costume Designer: Jany Temime

WARNING! Spoilers ahead!

Background

Spectre, Daniel Craig’s latest outing as James Bond, featured the globe-trotting agent once again battling the international terrorist organization SPECTRE and confronting the evil megalomaniac at its head, Ernst Stavro Blofeld (Christoph Waltz).

One of the most requested outfits from BAMF Style readers is the black three-piece Tom Ford suit that 007 wears when he arrives in style to a gangster’s funeral in Rome with his prototype Aston Martin. The tactiturn agent – once again gone rogue – swiftly seduces the gangster’s widow, the ravishing Lucia Sciarra (Monica Bellucci), before using her deceased husband’s ring to trick his way into a SPECTRE meeting. Bond finds himself face-to-face with Blofeld… and is surprised to recognize him as his half-brother of sorts, Franz Oberhauser. His cover blown, Bond is chased out of the meeting and back behind the wheel of his DB10 as he escapes the “Palazzo Cardenza” and Blofeld’s angry henchmen.

The Craig era has increasingly focused on retro elements of the 007 series, and it’s rarely been executed better than this entire Rome sequence that blends sophisticated luxury, stylish tailoring, seductive romance, larger-than-life action, and comic relief.

Many aspects of this outfit have been ably covered by experts, from The Suits of James Bond’s treatment of the tailoring to James Bond Lifestyle‘s rundown of the specific clothes and accessories featured in the scene, but I’d like to address the requests I’ve gotten from readers Adam, Birdman, Nico, Spencer, and many others by offering my own unique approach – and admiration – during Car Week on the 00-7th of December.

What’d He Wear?

Daniel Craig as James Bond on the set of Spectre (2015)

Aside from his iconic dinner suits, which are entirely different, black suits are decidedly not a staple of James Bond’s wardrobe. In fact, the only other time 007 wore a solid black suit on screen was for a gangland funeral in Diamonds are Forever (1971) when Sean Connery wore a heavy black three-piece suit to bid farewell to a deceased diamond smuggler, though his dark, heavy suiting could have hardly been a comfortable choice in the hot Mojave Desert.

James Bond’s black three-piece suit at Sciarra’s funeral is probably the best-fitting suit of Daniel Craig’s wardrobe in Spectre, with dramatic yet classic-inspired details that make it a fine choice for fitting in among flashy gangsters. Perhaps the choice to dress Craig in this suit was an intended homage to Diamonds are Forever; if so, it was a rare sartorial improvement upon an earlier example.

Craig’s suiting, identified as “black Super 110’s medium herringbone” wool by James Bond Lifestyle, is both more interesting and more versatile than the flat black of Connery’s suit. The suit was developed from the Tom Ford “Windsor” model, which also makes an appearance as the model of Bond’s ivory dinner jacket on the train through Morocco, though all of his other suits in Spectre are the Tom Ford “O”Connor” model.

Read more about the suit here:

• James Bond Lifestyle
• The Suits of James Bond

Production photo of Monica Bellucci and Daniel Craig in Spectre, highlighting his sharp black Tom Ford “Windsor” three-piece suit.

The jacket features many signatures of the vintage-inspired Tom Ford “Windsor” that takes its styling cues from fashions of the 1930s and 1940s as well as the style’s revival during the 1970s disco era. These details include wide peak lapels, a fuller chest with a suppressed waist, and wide flaps over the hip pockets and ticket pocket.

The jacket also has a single vent and five-button cuffs with the last button undone, proving to be something of a habit of Craig’s Bond when dressed in his Tom Ford suits. Like his O’Connor suits, this jacket has a curved “barchetta” breast pocket where Bond wears a white silk Tom Ford pocket square with a black rolled edge.

This black suit is Daniel Craig’s first three-piece suit on screen since the final scene of Casino Royale nearly a decade earlier. This suit’s matching waistcoat (vest) is single-breasted with a six-button front, though the lowest button is placed on the notched bottom and isn’t meant to be buttoned. Like waistcoats from the “golden age” of menswear in the ’30s and ’40s, this particular vest has four welted pockets.

Over the waistcoat, Bond wears a custom shoulder rig for his blued Walther PPK, crafted from brown leather for a classic look that not even Sean Connery’s Bond had. The rig has a holster under the left armpit, offering Bond a smooth right-handed pistol draw. Five of these holsters were custom made by armorer Dave Evans for Daniel Craig to wear throughout Spectre.

In most situations, revealing a shoulder holster during a romantic interlude would probably kill the mood.

The suit’s flat front trousers rise just high enough to meet the bottom of the waistcoat rather than the more classically proportional higher rise that would obscure the trouser waistline under the garment. The trousers have on-seam side pockets and jetted back pockets, and the bottoms are plain-hemmed rather than finished with turn-ups (cuffs) like Daniel Craig’s other Tom Ford suits across the series.

Since his first Tom Ford suit in Quantum of Solace, all of Craig’s lounge suits as 007 have been fitted with buckle-tab side adjusters on each side of the waistband. The trousers have an extended front waistband tab with a hidden hook closure.

The slide-buckle adjusters on Bond’s trousers are silhouetted as he makes his aerial escape from the SPECTRE meeting in Rome.

Bond’s level of disguising himself for the funeral even extends to his shirt collar, as he forgoes the regular point collars he wears elsewhere in Spectre and opts for a white cotton poplin Tom Ford shirt with a large point collar pinned under the tie knot with a gold-toned metal “barbell”-style bar that connects via an eyelet in each collar leaf.

The bold collar is complemented by a wide black tonal-check woven silk tie, also by Tom Ford, that Bond wears knotted in the Windsor knot that Fleming’s iteration had derided as “the mark of a cad” in the novel From Russia With Love.

The cuffs on Bond’s white shirt here have a graceful cutaway curve that reveals the two stacked buttons that fasten the sleeve around the wrist. While the shirt’s pinned collar may be part of the agent’s disguise, these distinctive “cocktail” cuffs that blend French cuff elegance with button cuff functionality are classic 007.

Also known by the more descriptive “turnback cuff”, these shirt cuffs have unconfirmed origins but their popularity boomed during the mid-20th century on the wrists of style icons like Yul Brynner, David Niven, and Peter Sellers. When Dr. No introduced the world to James Bond in 1962, Sean Connery exclusively wore cocktail cuff shirts with his lounge suits.

Interestingly, a number of Italian names for the cuff have emerged over the decades – Milanese, Neapolitan, Portofino, and simply “the Italian cuff” – which strengthens their suitability for 007’s current mission in Rome.

Daniel Craig channels Bond’s sartorial past with his cocktail cuff shirt.

Eschewing the traditional oxfords and derby shoes, James Bond opts for a pair of black double-monk boots, introducing a new style of footwear to the 007 oeuvre. For this, Bond turns again to Crockett & Jones, his reigning favorite footwear purveyor dating back to the four different models of shoes and boots that he wore in Skyfall (2012).

Craig wears black calf leather Camberley cap-toe ankle boots from Crockett & Jones’s “Main Line Collection” with two straps per boot that each buckle on the outside of the vamp. The Dainite rubber soles provide much-needed added traction as Bond finds himself bursting through windows, running over rooftops, and jumping down several floors to escape Oberhauser/Blofeld’s Stormtrooper-trained gunmen. You can pick up a pair of your own for $785 from the Crockett & Jones site.

Read more abut the boots at:

• Crockett & Jones
• James Bond Lifestyle

The Camberley’s Dainite soles give Bond a soft landing after his aerial escape from the Aston Martin. Note the double straps on each boot.

For the outdoor sequence at Sciarra’s funeral, Bond augments his look with a long black bridge coat, black leather gloves, and Tom Ford sunglasses.

Bond’s black wool double-breasted bridge coat adds a somber and stately touch. Although 007 is dressed in disguise, the bridge coat is an appropriate choice for Commander Bond, RNR, with its naval origins. A longer alternative to the pea coat that shares its Ulster collar and straight cut, the bridge coat’s appellation stems from its intended design for naval officers commanding their ship from the vessel’s bridge.

Traditional military bridge coats are appointed with gold shank buttons and epaulettes (shoulder straps) for the officer’s rank insignia, but Bond’s stylish civilian coat has eight black horn buttons in a rectangular, double-breasted four-button layout and straight, unadorned shoulders. The coat has two slanted hand pockets at the sides and set-in sleeves with plain cuffs. Bond’s knee-length coat is pulled in at the waist with its belted back, decorated with a black button at each end of the belt.

Read more about the bridge coat at The Suits of James Bond.

Interestingly, Bond only fastens the second button down, hardly an efficient method for keeping warm and not the most accessible style if he needs quick access to his Walther PPK.

Daniel Craig wears two pairs of Tom Ford sunglasses in Spectre, the first being this set of Tom Ford “Snowdon” FT0237 sunglasses with a frame in a dark tortoise brown frame called “Dark Havana” (color code 52N) and gray lenses that take on a brown cast in the finished film. Ryan Reynolds also wore a pair of Tom Ford Snowdon shades in Mississippi Grind, released earlier in 2015.

Read more about the sunglasses at James Bond Lifestyle.

Bond wears a pair of black driving gloves as he’s pulling up to the funeral in his DB10. Dents made these gloves as well as the black gloves that Craig wore in Skyfall, though these are the “Fleming” model designated with the product code 15-1007. These three-point gloves have perforated fingers, an elasticized palm, and a strap over the wrist that closes in the front with a Dents-branded dome stud. Dents takes pride in the hairsheep leather used to make them, claiming this to be the best leather for gloves due to its “natural strength and elasticity” as well as the fact that the sheep providing the leather grows hair rather than wool.

Read more about the gloves here:

• Dents
• James Bond Lifestyle

Bond accessorizes for a funeral.

Spectre reintroduced the NATO watch strap for 007, exactly fifty years after Sean Connery wore his Rolex on a striped strap in Thunderball. The well-publicized timepiece in Spectre is a steel Omega Seamaster 300 chronometer, specifically the SPECTRE Limited Edition model (reference 233.32.31.21.01.001) which was sold to the public in a limited release of 7,007 pieces.

The watch, powered by Omega’s Master Co-Axial calibre 8400 movement, has a 41mm brushed and polished stainless steel case. The bi-directional black ceramic bezel is marked at each hour from 1 to 0 (0 instead of 12) and coordinates with the black dial housed under the sapphire crystal. // The five-striped nylon strap alternates in black and gray like a true NATO strap. You can read more about the watch at James Bond Lifestyle.

A NATO-strapped dive watch and an Aston Martin with an ejector seat… some things never change at MI6.

What to Imbibe

Lucia: If you don’t leave now, we’ll die together.
Bond: I can think of worse ways to go.
Lucia: Then you’re obviously crazy, Mister-
Bond: Bond. James Bond.

Spectre promised a return to the old-fashioned elegance associated with early Bond films, thus calling for an obligatory scene of a sharply suited 007 enjoying champagne with a beautiful woman. In this case, the woman is Lucia Sciarra (Monica Bellucci), the glamorous widow of the gangster that Bond killed in Mexico City. The champagne is Bollinger R.D. 2002.

Bond’s unorthodox seduction method in Spectre consists of breaking into a woman’s home, murdering two assassins, and helping himself to her champagne.

Bollinger’s association with the James Bond film franchise dates back to 1973 when Roger Moore ordered a bottle (“slightly chilled”) to his hotel room in San Monique. Readers of the novels, however, may recall that the brand shows up as early as Diamonds are Forever, Ian Fleming’s fourth novel of the series, published in March 1956.

R.D. stands for récemment dégorgé, or “recently disgorged”, and this particular type of Bollinger was exclaimed to be “the best” by Georgi Koskov (Jeroen Krabbé) in The Living Daylights (1987).

The Car

Bond: If you’ve come for the car, I parked it at the bottom of the Tiber.
Q: Well, not to worry, 007. It was only a £3,000,000 prototype.

The sleek silver 2015 Aston Martin DB10 that 007 speeds through the streets of Rome was designed specifically for Daniel Craig’s James Bond to drive in Spectre.

Bond’s bespoke DB10 glides through the streets of Rome en route Sciarra’s funeral.

Aston Martin’s design team led by chief creative officer Marek Reichman worked closely with director Sam Mendes, who unveiled the DB10 as “the first cast member” at the film’s official press launch in December 2014. Only ten actual DB10 cars were eventually produced, all hand-built at the company’s state-of-the-art headquarters in Gaydon, England.

The DB10 design took many aesthetic and operational cues from the Reichman-designed Aston Martin V8 Vantage, borrowing the Vantage’s six-speed manual transmission and building its chassis on a modified version of the same VH Generation II platform that underpinned the last decade of Vantage models. The DB10 is powered by the same 4.7-liter V8 engine found in the V8 Vantage S, accelerating the DB10 from 0 to 100 km/h in 4.3 seconds and reaching an estimated high speed of 193 mph.

2015 Aston Martin DB10

Body Style: 2-door coupe

Layout: front-engine, rear-wheel-drive (RWD)

Engine: 4.7 L Aston Martin “AJ37” V8

Power: 430 hp (321 kW; 436 PS) @ 7300 rpm

Torque: 361 lb·ft (490 N·m) @ 5000 rpm

Transmission: 6-speed manual

Wheelbase: 106 inches (2705 mm)

Length: 174 inches (4410 mm)

Width: 87 inches (2204 mm)

Height: 49 inches (1250 mm)

Read more at Aston Martin‘s official website.

Of the ten Aston Martin DB10 models that were made, eight were used in the finished film. Two “show cars” remained, with one sold at auction in February 2016 for £2.4 million (or $3.5 million), far exceeding Christie’s expectations and making it the only DB10 ever offered for sale to the public… though one was also loaned out for Princess Eugenie of York’s wedding to Jack Brooksbank in October 2018.

Officially released production photo of Bond’s DB10 in Rome.

After the popularity of Spectre and Bond’s bespoke DB10, Aston Martin began incorporating design details into the latest version of the Vantage, unveiled in November 2017, though the new car is powered by a 4.0-liter Mercedes twin-turbo V8 engine paired to an eight-speed ZF automatic transmission, developing a whopping 503 bhp.

How to Get the Look

An enduring menswear misconception is that black suits are essential to a man’s wardrobe when, in fact, they are among the least useful suits and hardly worth the investment for a quality item.

The most appropriate time to wear a solid black suit – and the only time we see James Bond wearing one other than his dinner suits – is to a funeral. Daniel Craig’s black three-piece Tom Ford suit in Spectre has the additional distinction of a unique herringbone cloth that elevates it above the standard black suit into something that could be more practically worn for business… or for speeding through the streets of Rome in a bespoke sports car.

Daniel Craig as James Bond in Spectre (2015)

• Black herringbone wool Tom Ford “Windsor” tailored suit:
  • Single-breasted 2-button jacket with wide peak lapels, welted breast pocket, wide-flapped straight hip pockets with ticket pocket, functional 5-button “surgeon’s cuffs”, and long double vents
  • Single-breasted 6-button waistcoat with four welted pockets, notched bottom, and adjustable back strap
  • Flat front trousers with extended hook-closure waistband tab, buckle-tab side adjusters, on-seam side pockets, jetted back pockets, and plain-hemmed bottoms
• White cotton poplin Tom Ford dress shirt with pinned point collar, front placket, back side darts, and 2-button turnback/”cocktail” cuffs
  • Gold barbell-style collar bar
• Black tonal-check woven silk Tom Ford tie
• Black calf leather double monk-strap Crockett & Jones “Camberley” cap-toe ankle boots
• Black socks
• Dark brown oiled leather shoulder rig with RHD holster for Walther PPK
• Black wool Tom Ford bridge coat with Ulster collar, 8×4-button double-breasted front, slanted side pockets, belted back, and plain cuffs
• Dents black hairsheep leather three-point driving gloves
• Tom Ford “Snowdon” FT0237 sunglasses in “dark Havana” (52N) tortoise frame with gray lenses
• Omega Seamaster 300 SPECTRE Limited Edition (233.32.41.21.01.001) stainless steel wristwatch with black dial (and “lollipop” seconds hand) on black-and-gray striped NATO strap

Do Yourself a Favor and…

Check out the movie.

Daniel Craig as James Bond in Spectre (2015)

Vitals

Daniel Craig as James Bond, British government agent

Altaussee, Austria, Winter 2015

Film: Spectre
Release Date: October 25, 2015
Director: Sam Mendes
Costume Designer: Jany Temime

WARNING! Spoilers ahead!

Background

For the 00-7th of March, Daniel Craig’s birth month (the actor turned 51 on March 2), let’s explore how someone like James Bond keeps warm for a winter mission.

Spectre provided Daniel Craig’s agent 007 with his first extended sequences set during a snowy winter, excluding the abbreviated prologue in Casino Royale and epilogue in Quantum of Solace. In Spectre, Craig’s Bond dons heavy winter gear and travels to the shores of the Lake Altaussee, beneath the Loser Plateau (pronounced ˈloːzə) in Austria, in search of the elusive arch-criminal Mr. White (Jesper Christensen).

What’d He Wear?

Bond’s cold-weather outfit for his arrival in Altaussee has received much attention since the film’s release with comprehensive looks at the outfit from James Bond Lifestyle and The Suits of James Bond. It resonated with me as a practical and classic approach to dressing for the snowy climate.

The outfit is anchored by a navy blue wool/cashmere waist-length coat from Dior Homme’s fall 2012 menswear line, styled like a winter-friendly bomber jacket with a touch of battle dress inspiration that nods to Commander Bond’s military experience.

Someone call Emanuel Leutze!

The best winter jackets never skimp on keeping its wearer warm, and the Dior Homme coat doubles down with five large dark blue plastic buttons under a wide and asymmetrical concealed fly that also zips for extra insulation against the cold. Each set-in sleeve also closes with an extended zipper that adjusts the sleeve fit, accommodating Bond’s heavy gloves and keeping the tapered sleeves snug and warm over his wrists. There are also two large set-in pockets with flaps that each close with a double set of snaps.

The jacket’s shirt-style collar, which Bond wears with the black fur trim removed, has a throat latch tab; Bond’s decision to wear a turtleneck keeps his neck less vulnerable to the cold, thus he only wears the jacket semi-zipped… also allowing him access to his shoulder-holstered Walther PPK beneath it.

The Dior Homme jacket features zippers galore, from an asymmetrical zip-up front supported by five buttons to the zip-tightened sleeve ends.

My own ROYALE Filmwear “Altaussee jacket” with ivory Nautica quarter-zip, black-and-gray birdseye Banana Republic trousers, black calf Johnston & Murphy “Conard” wingtip boots, and black Aris Isotoner gloves.

As typical with Bond-worn clothing, the Dior Homme jacket found itself the subject of intense demand and existing pieces were quickly sold to 007 style enthusiasts. Luckily, the experts at ROYALE Filmwear developed the “Altaussee Jacket” that matches the style, color, and luxurious cashmere-blended fabric of the Dior Homme piece seen in Spectre for only $249! Also like Bond’s jacket, the ROYALE Filmwear piece includes a removable faux-beaver fur collar. If you’re still on the hunt for similar jackets to keep you warm in the cold, my friend at Iconic Alternatives stays on top of budget-friendly alternatives.

I purchased my own Altaussee Jacket from ROYALE Filmwear in October 2018, and it served admirably as a fashionable and insulating outerwear during the fall-to-winter transition as well as the frigid polar vortex that enveloped my region in arctic temperatures and wind chill.

James Bond kicked off the rollneck renaissance in Spectre, wearing a total of three N.Peal turtleneck sweaters in different colors across the film. The first is this light gray sweater, the warmest of the lot in a cable-knit Mongolian cashmere colored in a shade that N.Peal calls “Fumo Grey”. The sweater has a rolled polo neck and set-in sleeves.

N.Peal proudly touts this sweater’s connection to Spectre on its website, stating that it was “designed specifically for a very special customer,” and offering it to the style-conscious consumer for $430. You can also read more about this sweater from James Bond Lifestyle here.

Sam Mendes directs Daniel Craig on the set of Spectre. The open jacket gives us a better look at the cable-knit cashmere turtleneck than we get in the finished film.

Dave Evans, an experienced movie armorer whose Bond background extends back to Die Another Day in 2002, created five custom leather shoulder rigs for Daniel Craig to wear in Spectre. The holsters were designed to be free-standing—ideal for a lighter weight, compact sidearm like the Walther PPK—without any straps that would attach it to the trouser waistband like some full-size shoulder rigs.

One of the five holsters sold in for £23,750 via a Christie’s auction in February 2016, but recreations by Make It Jones are available for £95 to £115.

The brown leather shoulder holsters were treated for an aged leather look with a gunmetal-finished brass snap on a short retention strap that keeps the pistol holstered in place under the left armpit. The rig fits over Craig’s left shoulder with a thick leather strap with brass screw rivets to adjust the length, connected to a black elastic strap that fits over the right shoulder.

Craig takes more behind-the-scenes direction from Mendes, this time sans jacket, revealing both sweater and holster.

Bond’s black-and-gray tic-patterned trousers appear to be the same Neil Barrett trousers that he later wears with his dark navy John Varvatos racer jacket and charcoal N.Peal mock-neck in the London-set finale sequence, also featured on the famous Spectre teaser poster. The Neil Barrett trousers were identified by AJB007 user kadd in this thread, specifically describing them as the no longer available “BPA140 series 1213” from the autumn/winter 2014 collection.

kadd further described the trousers as a blend of 54% viscose, 26% nylon, 14% polyester, and 6% elastane, adding considerable stretch to the narrow fit. These flat front trousers have belt loops, frogmouth front pockets, jetted back pockets, and plain-hemmed bottoms. He appears to be wearing it with a black leather belt.

You can read more about the scenes where these trousers are featured at The Suits of James Bond and explore similar options from Iconic Alternatives.

Eagle-eyed viewers will note that Bond wears two different pairs of black boots, the waterproof Danner “Mountain Light II” lace-up hiking boots outside and the calf leather Crocket & Jones “Radnor” derby boots while inside Mr. White’s cabin.

While Crockett & Jones is the more on-brand boot for Bond, the Danner pair is the more functional choice of the the two. You can read more about the differences between these boots at The Suits of James Bond.

Though the Crockett & Jones boot does get a close-up (though hardly a glamour shot) as Bond reaches down to pick up his PPK, was it worth outfitting the agent in two different sets of boots for his outdoor and indoor scenes?

Bond wisely wears a winter hat and gloves for his travels, sporting a navy ribbed-knit wool watch cap (or “beanie”) and a pair of black quilted lambskin Agnelle gloves. The cap was made by Acne Studios, and the great @BondClothing Instagram account has identified it as possibly the “Miles Beanie” in 100% wool.

007’s gloves have been identified at James Bond Lifestyle as the “James” model that the brand still offers more than three years after the film’s release though sizes are increasingly limited. The Agnelle site touts the alpaca lining and smartphone-sensitivity on the index finger and thumbs, though Bond opts for his Walther PPK rather than his Sony Xperia Z5 during the sequence. (Whether or not the gloves could accommodate Q’s handprint-technology for Bond’s PPK/S in Skyfall is a different matter!)

Glimpsed between gloves and jacket cuff as Bond makes his way through Mr. White’s cabin is the agent’s Omega Seamaster 300, the classic chronometer whose appearance in Spectre was well-publicized leading up to the movie’s November 2015 release. The SPECTRE Limited Edition model (reference 233.32.31.21.01.001) was sold to the public in a limited release of 7,007 pieces.

Bond wears his steel Omega on a black-and-gray striped NATO strap, reintroducing this classic watch strap exactly fifty years after Sean Connery famously wore his Rolex on a striped strap in Thunderball. The Spectre Seamaster 300 has a brushed steel 41mm case, a bi-directional black ceramic bezel, and a black dial. You can read more about the watch at James Bond Lifestyle.

A NATO strap often protects the wearer from a wristwatch’s metal case transferring extreme weather to the wearer’s wrist, be it extreme heat or—in this case—winter chill.

On the third finger of his right hand, under the gloves, Bond wears the iconic Spectre ring that had previously gained him admission to the organization’s meeting in Rome.

The Gun

Daniel Craig’s Bond experimented with more technologically advanced weaponry, first the Walther P99 in Casino Royale (an extension from Pierce Brosnan’s tenure) and then a Walther PPK/S with palm-reading grips in the first half of Skyfall, but it’s his faithful classic Walther PPK that 007 carries most in Spectre.

Bond offers his own Walther PPK to Mr. White as a gesture of trust. This would have been a suitable occasion for him to be carrying a model with palm-reading grips, but Q seems to have retired that capability.

Generally unchanged in appearance and operation from its introduction in the early 1930s, the Walther PPK has been James Bond’s pistol of choice since Ian Fleming took the advice of firearms Geoffrey Boothroyd and wrote it into his novels, beginning with Dr. No in 1958.

Offered primarily in .32 ACP (7.65x17mm Browning SR) and .380 ACP (9x17mm Short), Bond’s PPK is typically chambered for the former cartridge, a smaller caliber but one that allows him to carry an additional round in the magazine.

How to Get the Look

Daniel Craig as James Bond in Spectre (2015). Note that his Walther PPK is out-of-battery with the slide pulled back.

James Bond dresses comfortably and practically in designer brands for his arrival in the snowy salt-mined resort village of Altaussee, sporting cool tones of blue, gray, and black that not only echo his wintry surroundings but also communicate the coldness of his deadly mission to Austria.

• Navy wool/cashmere-blend waist-length winter coat with shirt-style collar, 5-button/zip-fly front, zip-ended sleeves, and large set-in hip pockets with double-snapped flaps
  • Dior Homme (discontinued)
• Light gray cashmere cable-knit turtleneck sweater with set-in sleeves
  • N. Peal Cable Turtle Neck Cashmere Sweater NPG-299B in “Fumo Grey” ($430)
• Black-and-gray tic-checked flat front trousers with belt loops, frogmouth front pockets, jetted back pockets, and tapered plain-hemmed bottoms
  • Neil Barrett BPA140 (discontinued)
• Black leather belt with squared single-prong buckle
• Black leather winter boots
  • Danner “Mountain Light II” 5″ hiking boots with five-lug lacing and two speed hook sets ($380)
  • Crockett & Jones “Radnor” wax calf boots with four-eyelet derby lacing and five speed hook sets (discontinued)
• Dark brown aged leather shoulder holster with black elasticized strap, for Walther PPK pistol
• Navy ribbed-knit wool watch cap
  • Acne Studios “Miles Beanie” (discontinued)
• Black quilted lambskin gloves
  • Agnelle “James” (€112.50)
• Omega Seamaster 300 SPECTRE Limited Edition (233.32.41.21.01.001) stainless steel wristwatch with black dial (and “lollipop” seconds hand) on black-and-gray striped NATO strap

Do Yourself a Favor and…

Check out the movie.

Daniel Craig as Benoit Blanc in Knives Out (2019)

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Daniel Craig as Benoit Blanc, “a private investigator of great renown”

Massachusetts, November 2018

Film: Knives Out
Release Date: November 27, 2019
Director: Rian Johnson
Costume Designer: Jenny Eagan

Background

Happy birthday to Daniel Craig, born 52 years ago today on March 2, 1968! While Craig is likely best known as the most recent actor to portray James Bond, one of his most celebrated recent roles has been his Golden Globe-nominated performance in Knives Out as Benoit Blanc, an idiosyncratic detective who describes himself as a “respectful, quiet, and passive observer of the truth.”

A deserved winner of Best Original Screenplay at the 92nd Academy Awards this year, Knives Out serves as a modern tribute to classic mysteries like the works of Agatha Christie and Arthur Conan Doyle, dripping with atmosphere and injected with plenty of twists, turns, and tongue-in-cheek fun thanks to Rian Johnson’s clever, original, and inspired direction and writing as well as a top-notch cast headed by Craig as the Southern-fried private eye Benoit Blanc.

Considered “the last of the gentleman sleuths” in a New Yorker profile (and a once-referenced Tweet to said profile), Blanc is called to the estate of the recently deceased mystery novelist Harlan Thrombey (Christopher Plummer) at the behest of an anonymous member of the household to probe further into the mysterious circumstances of the 85-year-old man’s violent death, which would have otherwise been ruled a likely suicide by local authorities.

“Something is afoot with this whole affair. I know it, I believe you know it too,” Blanc confides in Marta Cabrera (Ana de Armas), the deceased author’s loyal caregiver who becomes Blanc’s de facto Watson once he recognizes her “regurgitative reaction to mistruths.” The Craig-de Armas teaming provides an entertaining screen chemistry ahead of their next pairing in No Time to Die, Craig’s fifth and final film as James Bond, scheduled for release next month.

While Craig may be hanging up his Tom Ford dinner jacket after a record-breaking 14 years as the reigning 007, Rian Johnson has confirmed that we haven’t seen the last of Benoit Blanc.

What’d He Wear?

Knives Out‘s promotional artwork distorted the colors of Daniel Craig’s attire, portraying Benoit Blanc in a trippy palette of greens, yellows, and purples as opposed to the colder grays and blues that we see on screen.

Benoit Blanc was clearly written in tribute to classic fictional detectives like Sherlock Holmes and Hercule Poirot, though he bucks the modern trend of updating these sleuths as “men of action” i.e. Downey and Branagh, instead allowing our ostensible protagonist to settle into the grand tradition of the “armchair detective” who relies more on his observational prowess and dogged attention to detail when it comes to solving cases. He’s well-attired for sure, but in a manner that’s more lived-in than elegant, more reminiscent of Peter Falk’s rumpled raincoat as Colombo than Poirot’s fussy neo-Edwardian suits. We get the sense that Blanc dresses more for his own comfort than to satisfy any obsessive urges, acknowledging professional decorum with a jacket and tie but adhering more to a quirky and individualistic personal dress code that’s neither trendy, timeless, or anachronistic; instead, Blanc appears to be a product of his own time, having emerged from a unique slice of 2018 when eccentric private detectives still solve murders in grand country estates.

Costume designer Jenny Eagan explained to Digital Spy that casting Daniel Craig in the role meant revisiting Rian Johnson’s original vision of the stereotypical Southern gentleman in his white linen suit, instead opting for an outfit that would allow him to effectively blend in as much as a private detective would need to while still distinguished from the rest “little touches” such as his suspenders and pocket squares and the floral flourishes in his ties and socks. “It pushed it into that world of the Southern gentleman, but keeping him sort of discrete, so that he could move freely and not be noticed or detected as something other than a normal person on the street.”

Indeed, the audience benefits from spending three consecutive days with Benoit Blanc, and a pattern emerges for his creative sense of dress. His well-chosen jacket and trousers never change, providing a neutral yet defined palette that harmonizes with his habit for gently frayed and subtly patterned point-collared shirts, floral ties, and contrasting pocket squares, a daily uniform that allows him to look professional and yet completely at home as he reclines astride a piano in the shadows of Harlan Thrombey’s great room.

The Jacket

“You’re fulla shit. I don’t trust this guy in the tweed suit,” Richard Drysdale (Don Johnson) exclaims after growing impatient with Benoit Blanc. Richard is not an unfashionable man, finding comfort in knit quarter-zips and horsebit loafers as he and his family deal with the aftermath of his father-in-law’s death, but he’s perhaps tellingly inaccurate in his generalization of Blanc’s attire.

While neither tweed nor a matching suit, Blanc’s outfit still presents a “tweedy” image with his woven odd jacket and low-contrast trousers. It may indeed be easily mistaken for an albeit lighter-weight tweed two-piece suit until one looks closer, requiring an attention to detail worthy of the detective’s own observational skills. It’s no surprise that this was lost on Richard, whose own impatience in the field of observation would lead to his own demise in the film’s denouement.

So if not tweed, then what? Blanc appears to wear a dark gray woolen sports coat constructed of basket-woven hopsack, an underused open weave that adds a coarse and rugged tweed-like sensibility but is more breathable and cooler-wearing and thus makes a more fitting “three-season” jacket for Benoit Blanc, whose “gentlest of Southern lilt” as described in Johnson’s Oscar-winning screenplay screenplay suggests a home base in the humid subtropical Mississippi Delta. (Craig evidently patterned his accent on Mississippi-born historian Shelby Foote, though Johnson has joked that it became “Shelby Foote by way of Foghorn Leghorn”.)

While the hopsack weave can be patterned in large and loose gages, Blanc opts for tighter, smaller-scaled gages resembling “an appearance of minute squares” as described by Hardy Amies in ABCs of Men’s Fashion. Combined with the sober, businesslike overall dark gray color, the more structured appearance of the tight-gage hopsack weave creates a more professional air.

The roping on the jacket’s sleeveheads builds up Daniel Craig’s shoulders, a detail commonly but not exclusively seen on more formal or structured jackets. In addition to its less structured, sack-like cut, Blanc’s single-breasted jacket is dressed down with sporty details like black woven leather buttons and patch pockets. The notch lapels roll to two buttons on the front which match the three on the end of each sleeve.

The three investigators—Blanc, Trooper Wagner (Noah Segan), and Lieutenant Elliot (Lakeith Stanfield)—stand around a seated Ransom Drysdale (Chris Evans).

Blanc’s style is one that can be easily adapted rather than strictly copied. Hopsack jackets can range in price from this affordable Buttoned Down charcoal wool jacket (via Amazon) to this charcoal wool/silk blend from Ermenegildo Zegna (via Neiman Marcus) at nearly $2,600.

A professional-looking hopsack jacket like Blanc’s gray sports coat provides a versatile layer appropriate for many climates and contexts, able to be dressed down or dressed up with a selection of your preferred type of shirt and tie pattern.

Day 1

We don’t see how Benoit Blanc packed for his trip, but—judging from the fact that he had one day to prepare—he seems to have made the laudable decision of finding a relatively neutral palette of an unchanging jacket, trousers, and shoes that could host a rotation of easier-to-pack shirts, ties, pocket squares, and (ostensibly) underwear.

Blanc chooses his most colorful of his screen-worn shirts for his initial meetings with most of the Thrombey family, dressed in a sky blue diamond-textured shirt. Like all of Blanc’s shirts seen on screen, the shirt has a long point collar, front placket, breast pocket, and rounded single-button cuffs, all gently frayed along the edges to that lends a broken-in quality. His khaki melange cotton pocket square, folded into triple peaks, is the first of three creative pocket hanks Craig wears in Knives Out, a delightfully jaunty contrast to the professional, TV-folded white and blue pocket squares he wears as 007.

Blanc also establishes his penchant for floral ties, wearing a black tie that spices up its staid ground with a field of duo-toned blue flowers covering the cravat. (At least one set photo suggests that the ground is actually a dark brown, though the same photo features Blanc wearing both belt and braces, an uncharacteristic sartorial redundancy corrected in the film and thus nullifying the screen-accurate veracity of the photo itself.)

Blanc’s sky blue shirt and blue-on-black floral tie for his introduction to the Thrombeys (as well as the audience) is arguably the most eye-popping of his underpinnngs as he opts for generally more subdued colors and patterns in the two days to follow.

If you’re in the market for floral neckwear à la Benoit Blanc, you’re in luck given their relative ubiquity among current menswear outfitters, including:

• Express “Narrow Floral Printed Silk Tie” in turquoise (via Express)
• Original Penguin “Lemongrass Floral Tie” in navy silk (via Amazon)
• The Tie Bar “Southey Floral Tie” in printed navy wool (via The Tie Bar)
• The Tie Bar “Walnut Street Tie” in navy cotton (via The Tie Bar)
• Twisted Tailor blue textured jacquard poly-blend tie (via ASOS)

Day 2

The following day, having pressed Marta into service as his ostensible “Watson”, Blanc dials down his tie and lets his pocket square claim the loudest pattern in his outfit, sporting a white-and-dark blue bengal-striped cotton pocket hank, unevenly tucked into his breast pocket in the manner of one attempting a straight TV fold under nervous duress. Of course, such a rigid, businesslike fold would be almost as uncharacteristic for our creatively dressed Blanc as a plain white pocket square, so the unevenly creased kerchief is more likely the product of Blanc’s pleasantly mild brand of sprezzatura than a failed attempt at formality.

Blanc and Marta are both caught off-guard when the will reading turns out to be considerably more exciting than the expected “community theater production of a tax return.”

Blanc’s white shirt is densely patterned in narrowly spaced horizontal rows of broken dark burgundy lines indented into the shirt for a seersucker-like texture that adds a hint of a pale lilac hue when the shirt is observed from farther away. Apropos the subtlety of the shirt pattern, Blanc also wears a more subdued floral tie, printed with downscaled burgundy flowers against a dark navy ground.

Marta is less than pleased when Blanc spots the recently broken trellis that climbs up the side of the Thrombey estate.

For floral ties in this subdued color scheme, check out these alternatives:

• Banana Republic “Floral Geo Tie” in navy-and-red woven polyester (via Banana Republic Factory)
• Michelsons of London large floral navy-and-red polyester tie (via KJ Beckett)
• Tommy Hilfiger “Classic Floral Tie” in navy-and-red woven silk (via Macy’s)

Day 3

On the third and final day of his investigation, Blanc wears an ice white melange shirt with a faded pale blue grid check that outlines the shirt into half-inch squares, each detailed with a pale blue-trimmed, white-filled dot in the center. The shirt is otherwise detailed like his others, with a long and soft point collar, front placket, and a breast pocket with a mitred-cornered bottom and a pointed yoke.

Blanc’s navy pocket square has taupe-sewn edges. A similar hank can be found from Budd Shirtmakers in navy silk with copper brown hand-rolled edges (via Budd).

This floral tie is the most objectively colorful of Blanc’s trio given the variety of shades present in the pattern, though the tie itself is relatively subdued with its red, gold, white, and green stenciled flower and leaf motif against a solid navy ground.

When his investigation reaches a climax, Blanc removes his coat, rolls up his sleeves, and tucks in the blade of his tie, providing the longest extended look of Blanc without his jacket on and revealing more of his trousers and suspenders than we’d seen up to this point.

The dark navy elastic suspenders (braces) are patterned in neat rows of seven widely spaced white pin dots, with silver hardware and black leather hooks that connect to buttons hidden along the inside of the trouser waistband. Albert Thurston has confirmed that they made the braces Craig wore in Knives Out; their site describes the color as black rather than the pin-dotted navy braces most prominently seen, though it’s possible that Craig wore solid black elastic braces in other scenes.

All knives point to Blanc, the center of his own “donut hole”.

Blanc delivered a suit-like effect by wearing dark gray trousers that barely contrast against his hopsack jacket, differentiated only by being a slightly warmer shade of gray woolen flannel. Like Richard, I had assumed that Blanc was wearing a matching suit when I first saw Knives Out in the theater, but reviewing it at home with the luxury of pausing to take Blu-ray screenshots proved that Craig indeed wears an odd jacket and trousers. “Slapdash suits” of low-contrast jackets and trousers are rarely advisable, but one could argue that Blanc salvages the integrity of the outfit by wearing contrasting fabrics that still harmonize due to coarser textures.

The trousers have a higher rise and a fuller fit than the tighter Tom Ford trousers that Craig has worn in his James Bond films of the 2010s, Skyfall and Spectre, though set photos from No Time to Die show Craig’s 007 enjoying retirement in Italy, clad more like Blanc than Bond in a looser-fitting corduroy suit with trousers held up by Albert Thurston braces.

Blanc’s dark gray trousers have belt loops that go unused to favor the navy suspenders and are fastened at the waist with a pointed waistband tab that closes through a single visible button. A shallow, single reverse-facing pleat flanks the fly on each side. The trousers have gently slanted “quarter top” side pockets and jetted back pockets with a button to close through the left pocket. The bottoms have a full break and are finished with turn-ups (cuffs).

When crime-solving gets too intense, lose your jacket, roll up your sleeves, and tuck in your tie blade!

Everything Else

Blanc wears unique black oxford brogues with leather perforated wingtips, five-eyelet panels, and heel counters, though the vamps appear to be constructed from a napped cloth.

Being who he is, Blanc embraces his hosiery as yet another opportunity for colorful self-expression, even if his socks are rarely seen. A flash of azure from his ankles during the first day of the investigation hints at his sky blue socks which appear to be patterned with navy-and-white branches.

Blue is Benoit Blanc’s color of choice for his introductory scene, coordinating his shirt, tie, and socks with Daniel Craig’s bright blue eyes.

You’d think Blanc may have gotten a little thrill when the investigation of Thrombey’s upstairs hallway provided him with the opportunity to kick off his shoes and show off his socks, but Blanc seems to dress solely for his own satisfaction with little interest in whether or not Marta or the excitable Trooper Wagner (Noah Segan) would take notice of his colorful hosiery. In this scene, he wears black socks with bright blue toes and heels, patterned with what appears to be large sunflowers.

Searching for sunflower-patterned socks yields more results tailored for women then men, though there are a few sharing similar details with Blanc’s socks such as these from Autumn Socks (via Poshmark), Gearfrost, PanPacSight (via Amazon), and TyQuii Socks (also via Amazon).

Likely the only actual tweed in his screen-worn ensemble, Blanc’s heavy tweed raglan coat is characteristically nonrestrictive and comfortably soft, constructed from a fuzzy, large-scaled brown-and-beige herringbone tweed. The distinctive coat is hardly something one would find off the rack at Macy’s or J. Crew, though suspiciously inexpensive replicas have abounded in the months since the film’s release from all the usual suspects, including Celebs Movie Jackets, Hollywood Jacket, and Ultimate Jackets.

Possibly vintage or the product of a designer like Craig’s favorite Brunello Cucinelli, the hip-length coat has notch lapels that roll to a four-button front that Blanc only buttons up when enjoying an evening cigar outside. The coat has a single vent and set-in side pockets with flaps that are invariably tucked inside the pockets themselves. The raglan sleeves are finished on each cuff with a squared-end semi-tab that closes through a single button.

Blanc’s hip-length herringbone tweed raglan-sleeve topcoat serves him as the perfect outer layer against a chilly New England autumn.

Thanks to the research of the fantastic @whatsdanielwearing Instagram account and confirmed by the current VIP Fan Auctions listing, we know that Blanc wore Cutler & Gross 1303-05 optical glasses with honey-colored tortoise Italian acetate “D” frames with shiny titanium lugs and temples.

Although out of stock as of this writing in February 2020, these handsome frames are still listed on the Cutler & Gross site.

Worn most prominently on the third day of his investigation, Blanc’s sunglasses are the same Cutler & Gross frames but with amber-tinted lenses.

Blanc evidently liked his Cutler & Gross specs so much that he got the same frames for his sunglasses.

Blanc wears a gold wristwatch on a textured dark brown leather strap, theorized by some Redditors to be a vintage Omega given Daniel Craig’s role as an ambassador for the brand who has frequently worn Omega watches both on and off the screen over the last 15 years.

How to Get the Look

Daniel Craig as Benoit Blanc in Knives Out (2019)

Benoit Blanc dresses in less elegant clothing than audiences may be used to seeing Daniel Craig wear as James Bond, but the idiosyncratic detective looks ultimately more comfortable than 007 in his hopsack sport jacket, broken-in shirts, and tweed coat, all detailed with creative flourishes like floral ties and socks and a rotation of pocket squares.

• Dark gray hopsack wool single-breasted 2-button sport jacket with notch lapels, patch breast pocket, patch hip pockets, 3-button cuffs, and single vent
• White or light blue subtly patterned shirt with long point collar, front placket, breast pocket, and 1-button rounded cuffs
• Navy floral-patterned tie
• Dark gray woolen flannel single reverse-pleated trousers with belt loops, pointed-end extended waistband tab, slightly slanted “quarter top” side pockets, jetted back pockets (with button through left), and turn-ups/cuffs
• Dark navy pin-dotted suspenders with silver-toned hardware and black leather hooks
• Black leather-and-cloth 5-eyelet wingtip oxford brogues
• Blue floral socks
• Brown-and-beige large-scaled herringbone tweed 4-button hip-length topcoat with notch lapels, flapped set-in hip pockets, raglan sleeves with single-button semi-tab cuffs, and single vent
• Cutler & Gross 1303-05 honey tortoise “D-framed” glasses with titanium lugs and temples
• Vintage gold wristwatch with round gold dial on textured dark brown leather strap

While many screen-worn items from Knives Out are available at the VIP Fan Auctions site now through March 31, it’s unfortunate that the only item from Blanc’s wardrobe appears to be his eyeglasses and sunglasses. (However, fans of Chris Evans will be delighted to see his famous Aran sweater—a product of French retailer The Kooples—among most other pieces from Ransom’s screen-worn wardrobe.)

Do Yourself a Favor and…

Check out the movie, newly released on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, DVD, and streaming services.

I also enjoyed reading Ethan M. Wong’s observations of the menswear in Knives Out for STREET x SPREZZA, which includes an extended focus on Benoit Blanc’s daily attire.

The Quote

A donut hole in a donut’s hole. But we must look a little closer, and when we do, we see that the donut hole has a hole in its center. It is not a donut hole but a smaller donut with its own hole, and our donut is not a hole at all!

Daniel Craig as Tuvia Bielski in Defiance (2008)

Vitals

Daniel Craig as Tuvia Bielski, Polish resistance leader

Belarus, August 1941 through April 1942

Film: Defiance
Release Date: December 31, 2008
Director: Edward Zwick
Costume Designer: Jenny Beavan

Background

Daniel Craig’s fifth and final movie as James Bond, No Time to Die, was originally scheduled for release in the U.K. today. Last month, MGM and Eon Productions announced that they were pushing the release to November in response to concerns related to the worldwide COVID-19 outbreak. While the postponement may have defied the wishes of Bond fans (see where I’m going with this?), there’s still plenty of Craig’s filmography out there to stream, including the 2008 war film Defiance.

Based on the true exploits of a Polish resistance group during World War II, Defiance wastes no time in establishing the different personalities of the four Bielski Brothers: pragmatic Tuvia (Daniel Craig) who emerges as a natural leader, tough Zus (Liev Schrieber) who is always ready for a fight, sensitive Asael (Jamie Bell) for whom family unity is most important, and the quiet youngster Aron (George MacKay) who withdraws after witnessing the deaths of his parents and family at the hands of the brutal Nazi Einsatzgruppen. (In reality, Asael was older than he was portrayed and was also the first to take up arms as opposed to his more mild-mannered depiction in Defiance.)

Encountering other Jewish refugees and families in exile, the partisans work together to survive while arming themselves to fight for vengeance and defend their lives as they grow to more than 1,200 strong, organizing what would become known as the Bielski Otriad.

Director and co-screenwriter Edward Zwick and screenwriter Clayton Frohman were inspired by Nechama Tec’s 1993 book Defiance: The Bielski Partisans, adding more combat scenes including a climactic tank battle that differed from the reality of the survival-oriented group. While scenes like that may have been invented for the screen, much of Defiance was filmed on location in Lithuania, just across the Belarusian border and reportedly about 100 miles away from where the actual Bielski Otriad had camped.

What’d He Wear?

As we follow Tuvia Bielski for nearly a year in the forest, the Otriad leader would need to be dressed in layers rugged and reliable enough to protect him through months of rain, snow, dirt, and combat without the possibility of changing while also serving as relatively effective camouflage.

“In this film, the characters live with nothing, so their costumes have to show how they cope with that,” costume designer Jenny Beavan offered in a December 2008 Variety interview, where it was explained that her team created six of each of the main actors’ costumes for Defiance. “You have to have a certain amount done up front, but things evolve during the course of shooting because you become inspired by something, so we were still tweaking everything until it was just right.”

At least two of the leather jackets Beavan designed for Daniel Craig to wear as Tuvia Bielski were on display at the Heritage Museum & Gardens in Sandwich. Museum curator Jennifer Madden explained to 90.9 WBUR’s Erin Trahan that Beavan’s process included “aging” the jackets with dye and cheese graters to create the look of a garment that withstands constant battles with German troops, seasonal precipitation, and life in the woods.

Tuvia’s brown leather jacket is styled like a classic car coat, hip-length and with a large enough fit to be worn over a lounge jacket. The coat has a large, point collar and a brass zipper that zips up from the waist, leaving a few inches of skirt below to aid Tuvia’s movements when he needs to move quickly. The zipper rises up to an inch shy of the top of the coat.

A horizontal yoke extends across the front and back, aligned toward the bottom of each armhole, with short pleats extending down from each of the back yokes for a touch of added mobility. An inch down from the front yoke, on each side of the chest, is a set-in pocket with a jetted opening and brass zip closure. There are also patch pockets lower on the hips with narrow straight flaps but no evident buttons, snaps, or zips to fasten. The set-in sleeves are reinforced at the ends with a seam that rings around each cuff under a rounded-end semi-strap that closes through a single mixed dark brown sew-through button.

Tuvia confers with his brother Zus.

There are many replicas offered for sale across the internet, though I’d place my faith in the screen-inspired tribute offered by Magnoli Clothiers in goatskin, lambskin, and cowhide, as well as a “pre-distressed” finish for the kind of patina one would see after months in the woods.

From the beginning of the movie, Tuvia wears a thick dark brown leather belt that serves as his de facto gun belt, typically worn over his outermost layer though he initially wears it over his jacket and under his leather coat when only armed with the French Charmelot-Delvigne revolver that he shoves into the belt. The thick belt has a large gunmetal double-prong buckle.

After obtaining an old French revolver from their neighbor, Tuvia wears it tucked into his belt, worn under his leather coat but over his lounge jacket.

As the Bielski Otriad gets more tightly organized and better armed, Tuvia supplements his belt with a dark leather strap that crosses over his right shoulder like a Sam Browne rig, connecting onto his waist belt with wide leather loops. This narrower strap has a gold-toned single-prong buckle, contrasting with the dulled silver gunmetal buckle of his waist belt.

The addition of the diagonal cross strap gives Tuvia better support for adding a holster, magazine pouches, and a vertical knife sheath onto his belt. The German-issued black hardshell leather holster has a wide flap with a narrow strap that passes through through a metal loop to retain his Walther P38 in place as well as a forward-positioned slot for an extra magazine. Worn on the back left of his belt is a three-cell magazine pouch, made of “field gray” (feldgrau) canvas with black retention straps to carry three of the long, straight box magazines for his MP40.

Same belt, different day… and on this particular day, Tuvia has already supplemented his usual belt with a cross strap, holster, magazine pouch, and sheathed knife.

Under his coat, Tuvia wears a fraying olive drab cotton unstructured jacket that’s styled and cut like a ventless, single-breasted lounge jacket with its notch lapels, three-button front, patch breast pocket, and hip pockets. Unlike a suit or sport jacket, the ends of the jacket’s sleeves are plain with no buttons or vents, and Tuvia frequently cuffs back the end of each sleeve.

The color and cut of Tuvia’s jacket, as well as his habit of wearing all three buttons fastened, suggests a militaresque appearance apropos his role as commander of the Bielski Otriad, even if it isn’t a true military garment.

Tuvia’s pullover shirt is slate-gray with tonal blue striping, made of a lightweight cotton that has taken to pilling over many months in hard service as the Otriad leader’s only shirt. The shirt’s set-in sleeves are shirred at the shoulders and fastened with button cuffs that he unbuttons and rolls up to his forearms when working around the camp.

The shirt four buttons widely spaced down the plain-front bib, worn with the lowest three buttons fastened and open at the neck, where the top of his pale ecru slubbed long-sleeve henley undershirt occasionally peeks through. The slate-gray pullover shirt has a soft point collar that becomes unpresentably wrinkled, though keeping a pressed collar is understandably among the highest of Tuvia Bielski’s priorities.

Tuvia spends his months in the woods wearing corduroy breeches, a smart choice for comfort and durability. The cloth is a fine gauge corduroy known as “pinwale” or “needlecord” (best observed in this closeup), colored in an olive gray cloth not unlike the drab “field gray” or feldgrau of the era’s German uniforms.

Tuvia’s high-rise breeches have single foward-facing pleats, side pockets, and an additional coin pocket on the right side, though there are no back pockets. In addition to a pointed-end “cinch-back” strap, these trousers are held up by a set of green, taupe, and burgundy striped suspenders (braces) with silver-toned adjusters and brown leather hooks that connect to buttons along the inside of the trouser waistband.

The bottoms of Tuvia’s breeches are tucked into plain black leather riding boots with hard leather soles. The calf-high shafts have straight openings around the top and are unadorned with straps or buckles, similar in style to the German-issued M1939 Marschstiefel (“marching boots”), infamously monikered “jackboots”, and the long leather boots worn by the Soviet Red Army.

MP40 in hand, Tuvia takes cover behind a tree while battling the Germans.

As the weather grows cooler approaching winter, Tuvia dresses for a scouting mission in an olive military side cap and charcoal woolen scarf. Tuvia may have considered the possibility of encountering the Soviets during the mission as his khaki side cap is similar to the khaki pilotka summer cap issued by the Red Army, albeit without the distinctive Red Star badge that was pinned to the front. (These days, you can even find Soviet pilotkas on Amazon!)

The sidecap makes only this brief appearance around the time of the Bielski Otriad’s first encounter with the local Soviet troops, but Tuvia would continue wearing the charcoal scarf through winter.

Otherwise, Tuvia typically dresses his head in a dark olive tweed flat cap, similar to the Greek fisherman’s caps that had crept their way inland to become popular workwear, particularly among the Russian Jewish community as famously worn by Topol as Tevye the milkman in Fiddler on the Roof (1971).

Tuvia catches Lilka’s eye through the falling snow during Asael’s wedding.

As the snowy winter of December 1941 extends into 1942, Tuvia adds the additional layer of a light fawn-colored topcoat made of tattered wool with a piled fur-lined collar that Zus had initially liberated from a local farmer who collaborates with the Germans. Wearing it through most of the winter, Tuvia also lends it to Lilka (Alexa Davalos) with his Walther P38 for her first food mission; she returns it to him in time for him to use as a blanket as he recovers from his winter sickness, and subsequent scenes depict both Tuvia and Lilka sharing the coat until the spring.

The long coat has a high-fastening double-breasted front with two columns of five buttons each, fastening through a fly front that provides a clean appearance when the coat is buttoned. The wide collar is fur-lined, providing extra warmth and protection when the coat is buttoned and the collar turned up against Tuvia’s neck and face. The coat also has hand pockets and a short back belt with a button on each rounded end that suppresses the fit around the waist. The set-in sleeves have no buttons, straps, or buckles at the ends, only a seam that rings around the cuff about six inches back from the end of each sleeve. Tuvia also wears dark brown knitted fingerless gloves throughout the winter.

Bundled up against the cold winter.

When the snow thaws and winter gives way to spring, Tuvia hangs up his heavier topcoat and opts for a long dark brown leather pilot’s flying jacket that extends below his knees, another piece similar to items worn by the Soviet Army that may subconsciously code him as an ally when he returns to their camp to request assistance.

The double-breasted coat has four rows of two buttons, with the top row at the neck spaced a little higher than the three rows on the chest, belt line, and hips. Tuvia wears the coat’s large point collar turned up, revealing a throat latch buttoned onto the right collar leaf that would ostensibly be fastened to the left leaf to close the coat over his neck if needed. The coat also has slanted hand pockets and raglan sleeves with plain cuffs.

Tuvia wears double-layered leather coats for his return to the snowy Soviet camp.

With the arrival of spring, Tuvia has no need for his additional layers and abandons both topcoats as well as the heavy scarf, instead catching his sweat with a black-and-gray striped wool neckerchief that he wears under his shirt like a day cravat.

Tuvia faces the group’s next obstacle to freedom.

Tuvia wears a vintage wristwatch with a sterling silver cushion case on a brown edge-stitched leather strap. The watch has a round tan radium dial with black-outlined Arabic numeral hour markers and a sub-section register at 6:00. My friend Aldous, an eagle-eyed pro with whom I often consult with on the subject of wristwatches, suggests that the watch was likely manufactured no later than the mid-1920s due to the design of its dial, luminous “cathedral” hands, and the fixed wire lugs that were increasingly less common after the advent of the now-ubiquitous spring bar.

Cushion-cased watches were widely popular around the world during this era, making identification of Craig’s screen-worn watch more difficult. Some on Quora and WatchUSeek have suggested that, as he would as James Bond and in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Daniel Craig wears an Omega, though of 1940s vintage to fit with the film’s timeframe, though I doubt these theories as the details of the watch don’t resemble any period Omegas I’m familiar with. Aldous pointed out to me that the quality of the metal does not suggest a higher-end watchmaker like Longines or Omega but rather a more run-of-the-mill Swiss watch like a Cyma.

In fact, I recommend tracking down vintage Cyma cushion-cased watches from the 1920s if you want to cop Daniel’s horological style from Defiance as there are quite a few on the market not unlike his screen-worn piece. (For example, this 1927-dated Cyma via Etsy.)

The Guns

“One pistol is nothing, we need rifles, machine guns,” observes Zus as the three oldest brothers formulate their first plan of vengeance. “Machine guns? What’s next, you’re gonna take on the whole German Army?” asks Tuvia, foreshadowing that—by the end of the story—that’s exactly what the brothers are prepared to do. But first, they’ll need that “one pistol.”

The handgun in question is actually a Chamelot-Delvigne Modèle 1873 revolver, designated the modèle 1873 in French military service. The MAS 1873 had already been relatively obsolete by World War II, though it had a reputation for reliability and remained in use in limited numbers by French service, namely among reserve units, police officers, and resistance fighters.

After the Franco-Prussian War resulted in a German victory, the French recognized a serious need to upgrade their weaponry. Belgian gunsmith J. Chamelot and French inventor Henri-Gustave Delvigne collaborated to develop what would become the first double-action revolver issued to the French Army. Per its designation, the Chamelot-Delvigne revolver was produced by the French state manufacturer Manufacture d’armes de Saint-Étienne (MAS) from 1873 until 1887. The Modèle 1873 with its bare metal finish was offered to non-commissioned officers while the newly developed Modèle 1874 “Revolver d’Officier” with its darker blued finish and fluted cylinder was issued to officers, though most French commissioned officers reportedly preferred swords to sidearms as personal defense weapons through World War I.

By that time, Chamelot-Delvigne revolver production had long ceased with more than 330,000 of the Army Modèle 1873 and 1874 revolvers produced as well as a slightly more powerful Navy model. The standard issue French sidearm had already been upgraded to the Modèle 1892 “Lebel” revolver, which fired the smaller 8mm French Ordinance round that, while smaller than the Modèle 1873’s 11mm round, was nearly equivalent in power.

Tuvia borrows his MAS 1873 from a neighbor, the sympathetic farmer Kościk (Jacek Korman), who only has four rounds of the revolver’s proprietary 11mm French Ordnance black powder ammunition. A rimmed cartridge measuring approximately 11×17 mm R, this round was relatively anemic for a weapon of its size, equivalent in velocity and power to the .32 ACP compact pistol round (an improvement over the earlier-issued ammunition, which was closer to the underpowered .25 ACP.) Still, it’s wielded to deadly effect in James Bond’s, er, Tuvia Bielski’s hands when he exacts vengeance on his parents’ deaths by executing the cruel Schutzmannschaft (Auxiliary Police) chief who was responsible for their deaths.

“Only four bullets,” Tuvia explains to Zus, who responds: “Then we’ll have to make them count.”
Note Daniel Craig’s correct trigger finger discipline.

As the brothers gain access to better arms and ammunition, mostly of German or Russian issue, Tuvia has no further need for his underpowered and obsolete French revolver and begins carrying a Walther P38 as his preferred sidearm.

The Wehrmacht had adopted the P38 as its issued service pistol in 1940, two years after the first design had been completed and effectively replacing the iconic but aging Luger. The Walther P38 was innovative for its time as the first locked-breech pistol with a double-action trigger (similar to that on Walther’s blowback-action PPK), a necessity mandated by the P38’s more powerful 9x19mm ammunition. Despite some experimental or limited runs in other calibers, the 9x19mm Parabellum round was essentially standard for the P38, feeding from an eight-round box magazine. Although its locked breech was part of the initial P38 design, the Heer requested that this original design be modified from its hidden hammer to an external hammer, resulting in the two-year delay before production could get underway.

Germany produced Walther P38 pistols throughout the duration of the war, ending in 1945 after the Allied victory. A dozen years later, the West German Bundeswehr requested that the P38 re-enter production, which it did in June 1957. These postwar P38 pistols, and the P1 variant that began production in 1963, can be differentiated by their slightly lighter aluminum frames as opposed to the steel frames of WWII-production P38 pistols.

Tuvia doles out intra-camp punishment with his Walther P38.

In addition to carrying a German service pistol, Tuvia keeps a captured German MP40 submachine gun as his primary assault weapon. Designated Maschinenpistole 40 in German military service, this submachine gun was often nicknamed the “Schmeisser” by Allied soldiers in reference to Hugo Schmeisser, the German weapons designer whose MP18 became the first submachine gun to be used in combat; however, Schmeisser had nothing to do with the direct development of the MP40, which had been designed by Heinrich Vollmer.

Fed from a 32-round, double-stack box magazine, the MP40 fired 9x19mm Parabellum ammunition at a rate of between 500 and 550 rounds per minute. The MP40 could only fire fully automatic with no options for single shots or a three-round burst as found on modern submachine guns, though this relatively low rate of fire (compared to the M1A1 Thompson firing up to 800 rounds per minute) allowed for steady shots in the hands of a skilled shooter.

More than one million MP40 submachine guns were produced at Erma Werke over the course of the war, primarily carried by infantrymen and paratroopers, the latter particularly benefiting from the weapon’s innovative front-folding stock. Unlike the Walther P38, MP40 production was not resumed after the war.

Daniel Craig correctly keeps his finger off the trigger and grips the MP40 by its handguard rather than by the magazine itself, often incorrectly depicted as a foregrip when, in fact, gripping the MP40’s magazine while firing would frequently cause feeding malfunctions.

During the climactic final battle, Tuvia overpowers a group fo German soldiers manning an MG34 machine gun and commandeers the weapon himself. This air-cooled machine gun, designated Maschinengewehr 34 in German service, predated World War II and was considered the first “general purpose” machine gun upon its introduction in 1934. The MG34 was another design from Heinrich Vollmer, the Württemberg-born weapons developer also responsible for the aforementioned MP40.

Chambered in the same rimless 7.92x57mm Mauser rifle round that had been fired by German service rifles for three decades, the recoil-operated MG34 was first issued to units in 1936, entering wider service in January 1939 as Germany prepared for war. With its high rate of fire, relative lightness, and versatility, the MG34 was a popular weapon across all German military branches and battlefronts. The complexity of its production led to the development of the cheaper and faster-firing MG42, though both machine guns remained in production and service through the war’s end.

Tuvia takes over the MG34.

What to Imbibe

The brothers Bielski generally limit most of their drinking toward the beginning of the movie, passing a bottle of Altenburger Schwarzgebrannter, a German herbal liqueur.

Zus hands Tuvia a bottle to drown his sorrows after an unpleasant task.

I’m not sure if this particular spirit would have been around during World War II as the Altenburger distillery site explains that the liquor factory itself didn’t open until 1948.

I’ll admit I was unfamiliar with this spirit before watching Defiance, but the Altenburger site provides additional context as well as this forum where a user describes it as “a bitter herb liqueur from Altenburg in Thuringia. One usually drinks one shot glass full after a rich meal.”

How to Get the Look

Daniel Craig as Tuvia Bielski in Defiance (2008). From a photo by Karen Ballard.

Even Daniel Craig himself seems to have taken some style inspiration from his costume as Tuvia Bielski, as observed by Eve Buckland for the Daily Mail.

• Brown worn leather hip-length combat car coat with large point collar, waist-to-neck brass zip closure, horizontal front and back yoke, two  zip-closure jetted set-in chest pockets, two patch hip pockets (with flaps), and set-in sleeves with single-button straps
• Olive cotton unstructured single-breasted 3-button jacket with patch breast pocket, hip pockets, plain cuffs, and ventless back
• Slate-gray tonal striped lightweight cotton pullover shirt with point collar, four-button bib, and button cuffs
• Green, taupe, and burgundy striped suspenders with silver-toned adjusters and brown leather connector hooks
• Olive gray pinwale corduroy high-rise breeches with single forward-facing pleats, side pocket, right-side coin pocket, and cinch-back strap
• Dark brown leather Sam Browne belt with dulled gunmetal double-prong buckle
  • Narrow dark brown leather cross strap (with gold-toned single-prong buckle)
  • Black leather Walther P38 belt holster with flap
  • Three-cell MP40 magazine pouches
  • Knife sheath
• Black leather calf-high riding boots with hard leather soles
• Dark olive tweed flat mariner’s cap
• Charcoal woolen scarf
• Vintage silver cushion-cased watch with tan dial (with Arabic numeral hour markers and 6:00 sub-dial) on brown edge-stitched leather strap

Do Yourself a Favor and…

Check out the movie.

The Quote

If we should die trying to live, then at least we die like human beings.

Whether locked down at home or safely enjoying a warm getaway, I hope this summer has been safe and stylish for BAMF Style readers!

Although this summer has been markedly different from years past, I still found myself relying on the familiar comforts of retail therapy, specifically building my unnecessarily vast wardrobe of short-sleeve printed shirts and discovering the wares of great warm-weather outfitters like Aloha FunWear, Busbee McQuade, Dandy Del Mar, and Scott Fraser Collection.

I’m always on the lookout for budget-friendly alternatives to favorite items I’ve spotted in movies and TV, and this was a particularly fruitful year for finding three fine alternatives to shirts I’d long wanted from the tropical worlds of James Bond and Thomas Magnum. While I’ve already explored two of these looks in depth on BAMF Style, I wanted to break from my usual format on what I believe to be my 1,000th post to express my excitement for these finds.

I had plenty of fun putting together this brief guide to share some of this season’s finds that I’ve been picking up, comparing budget versions against some of the higher investment pieces and—for the sake of transparency—being sure to mention whether or not I personally owned the shirts in question.

Please feel free to add your own observations or summer favorites in the comments!

All prices, ratings, and availability as of July 10, 2020.

To kick things off, I also wanted to add a brief playlist I curated of some of my favorite instrumental tracks for a long, lazy summer day into night, beginning with Link Wray’s surf-infused interpretation of Liszt’s famous “Liebesträume No. 3.”

Bond’s Striped Camp Shirt in Thunderball

One of the most popular pieces of James Bond’s casual wear, this blue-and-white striped short-sleeved camp shirt from Thunderball continues to attract attention 55 years after Sean Connery first wore it with cream linen slacks and sandals at Largo’s Bahamian estate. Orlebar Brown wisely included it in the third release of their 007 Heritage Collection this year, though I found a surprising alternative for a portion of the price from Abercrombie & Fitch.

James Bond (Sean Connery) wore this striped summer shirt with camp collar for a warm afternoon of shotguns and rum at the estate of villain Emilio Largo (Adolfo Celi) in Thunderball (1965).

The Budget Buy:

The Short-Sleeve Camp Collar Button-Up Shirt in “Navy Blue Stripe” from Abercrombie & Fitch

Abercrombie & Fitch
Short-Sleeve Camp Collar Button-Up Shirt

Price: $27.50

Color: Navy Blue Stripe

Material: 100% viscose

Average customer rating: 3.5/5 stars (2 reviews)

Do I own it? Yes

While viscose is hardly an ideal substitute for a cool-wearing cotton/linen blend, the soft, lightweight fabric is still comfortable with a pattern and style that echoes Connery’s screen-worn shirt and for less than 10% the price of the Orlebar Brown reproduction.

Admittedly, my initial connotation with A&F date from my high school and college years, when I associated it with over-sexualized advertising and occupying a pungent corner in the local mall, but the brand appears to have reinvented itself with more practical clothing at accessible prices. I re-discovered the brand during the first few weeks under quarantine and have come to rely on its sweater-knit pocket tees as a comfortable staple when working from home and blogging into the night.

The Investment:

The Thunderball Stripe Shirt in Riviera/White from Orlebar Brown

Orlebar Brown
Thunderball Stripe Shirt

Price: $295

Color: Riviera/White

Material: 100% woven cotton/linen blend

Average Customer Rating: 5/5 stars (2 reviews)

Do I own it? No

The price tag is the only major factor that has kept this screen-accurate replica from my closet, beautifully detailed with OB’s “Capri collar” as well as a blue all-over butcher stripe and breast pocket to mimic 007 himself.

You can read more about the original look in my BAMF Style post.

Bond’s “Enjoying Death” Shirt in Skyfall

Daniel Craig’s 007 may be the most dressed-down iteration of the character yet, balancing his suits from Brioni (in Casino Royale) and Tom Ford (in everything else) with practical and contemporary casual-wear rooted in classic staples that will hopefully be less susceptible to aging than casual-wear often can be. After he was presumed killed on assignment at the beginning of Skyfall, Bond is shown to be “enjoying death” in exile on a remote Greek island, sporting a uniquely printed Zara Youth shirt with his Levi’s Vintage Clothing leather jacket and Topman trousers.

Clad in Zara shirt, James Bond (Daniel Craig) eyes a scorpion as he owns up to a bar challenge to down a dram of Macallan and capture the deadly arachnid in the glass before it can bite him in Skyfall (2012).

The Budget Buy:

Standard-Fit Long-Sleeve Linen and Cotton Blend Shirt in “blue floral” from Amazon house brand Goodthreads

Amazon
Goodthreads Men’s Standard-Fit Long-Sleeve Linen and Cotton Blend Shirt

Price: $20.04

Color: Blue Floral

Material: 55% linen, 45% cotton

Average customer rating: 4.2/5 (222 reviews)

Do I own it? Yes

While not screen-accurate in its print (nor was it intended to be), this affordable and comfortable shirt from that most omnipresent of online retailers evokes the look and style of Craig’s cynical, grizzled 007.

The Investment:

The “Enjoying Death” shirt from ROYALE Filmwear

ROYALE Filmwear
SKYFALL Enjoying Death Shirt

Price: $89

Color: Light Blue

Material: 100% cotton

Do I own it? No

The ROYALE Filmwear experts diligently replicated Craig’s screen-worn shirt, from the intricate repeating navy floral pattern to the fit and the pocket flaps. If Skyfall convinced you that Bond’s shirt is what you need in your wardrobe, this meticulous tribute would be the best place to turn.

You can read more about the original look in my BAMF Style post.

The Magnum, P.I. “Jungle Bird” Shirt

Arguably the most iconic and recognizable of Tom Selleck’s tropical shirts on the original run of Magnum, P.I., the red “jungle bird” aloha shirt made by Paradise Found remains in production more than 40 years after the series pilot was filmed and even Selleck’s “successor” Jay Hernandez has been spotted wearing it on the recent CBS reboot.

Thomas Magnum (Tom Selleck) wears his red “jungle bird” Paradise Found aloha shirt one of many times on Magnum, P.I., seen here in the episode “Missing in Action” (Episode 1.09).

The Budget Buy:

“Island Paradise” relaxed fit camp shirt from Old Navy

Old Navy
Relaxed-Fit Printed Short-Sleeve Camp Shirt

Price: $26

Color: “Island Paradise”

Material: 100% rayon

Average customer rating: 4.7/5 stars (74 reviews)

Do I own it? No

It may lack the avifauna that give the original “jungle bird” shirt its particular joie de vivre, but this Old Navy printed shirt strikes me as a fine starting place for aspiring aloha-wearers inspired by Magnum but looking to see what works for them with the help of a familiar, inexpensive, and reliable brand… or it could just nicely pad the closets of a seasoned aloha-wearer.

The Alternate Budget Buy:

Parrots Hawaiian Shirt from Pacific Legend

Pacific Legend
Parrots Hawaiian Shirt

Price: $26.87 to $39.95

Color: Red

Material: 100% cotton

Average customer rating: 4.4/5 stars (516 reviews)

Do I own it? No

While I don’t have firsthand experience with this shirt or company, it seems to have strong reviews as an authentic, Hawaiian-made alternative to the “jungle bird” shirt on Magnum, P.I. If it weren’t for how affordable the genuine Paradise Found shirt was, I would likely seek out this alternative for myself.

The Investment:

The original “jungle bird” aloha shirt by Paradise Found, available from AlohaFunwear

AlohaFunwear
Paradise Found Original Magnum PI Hawaiian Shirt

Price: $64

Color: Red “Jungle Bird”

Material: 100% rayon

Average customer rating: 5/5 stars (51 reviews)

Do I own it? Yes

This is The One! Made in Hawaii, this shirt from Paradise Found continues the pattern that was popularized when their shirts were first worn by Tom Selleck in the ’80s, detailed with matching pocket and real wood buttons. As a proud owner of this shirt, I can attest to its comfort, its beautifully vivid and eye-catching print, and the fact that you don’t need Selleck’s signature facial hair or Ferrari to feel great wearing it.

Plus, the Aloha Funwear crew is fantastic and takes pride both in their authentic products and their warm, attentive customer service.

While I haven’t covered the red “jungle bird” shirt yet, you can read more about Selleck’s first aloha shirt on Magnum, P.I. in this BAMF Style post.

Bond’s Off-White Terry Cloth Shirt

In addition to his Conduit Cut suits, grenadine ties, and cocktail cuff shirts, Sean Connery established terry cloth as one of 007’s preferred fabrics for summertime leisure garb, first with his blue playsuit in Goldfinger (1964) and again when briefly sporting a beige mottled toweling camp shirt in the pre-credits sequence of Diamonds Are Forever (1971). The shirt had been recreated by Orlebar Brown during last year’s release of its 007 Heritage Collection, though it appears that this particular piece has completely sold out and been discontinued. Not to worry, fans of luxury and leisure, as we appear to be in the midst of a terry cloth revival…

Sean Connery sports a ’70s-styled terry shirt in the Diamonds Are Forever (1971) prologue.

The New Find:

The Tropez Terry Cloth Shirt from Dandy Del Mar

Dandy Del Mar
The Tropez Terry Cloth Shirt

Price: $109

Color: Ivory

Material: 80% cotton/20% polyester terry cloth

Average customer rating: 5/5 stars (5 reviews)

Do I own it? Yes

One of my favorite discoveries of the year was Dandy Del Mar, the California-based outfitter celebrating a return to the glory days of leisure through its vintage-inspired resortwear, consisting of terry cloth shirts, shorts, and robes, classic and comfortable swim trunks, and huaraches.

The brand’s creative, resplendent with cocktails, Cadillacs, beaches, and beautiful women drew me in to its world of leisure, and I was honored to be gifted this very shirt which has quickly become one of my poolside favorites.

While I haven’t covered Connery’s shirt from Diamonds Are Forever yet, you can read more about Dandy Del Mar in this BAMF Style post.

Though different from the usual BAMF Style format, I want to reinforce that this is a completely organic post, not sponsored or promoted by any of the brands mentioned. However, as an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases from Amazon.com, and I may receive commissions for certain purchases made through Amazon links.

Daniel Craig and Léa Seydoux in the 24th official James Bond film Spectre (2015)

Vitals

Daniel Craig as James Bond, British government agent

Tangier, Morocco, November 2015

Film: Spectre
Release Date: October 25, 2015
Director: Sam Mendes
Costume Designer: Jany Temime

WARNING! Spoilers ahead!

Background

Bond fever is heating up for the 00-7th of September in anticipation for No Time to Die, an excitement heightened by the official release last week of a new trailer and new poster that gave us another look at Daniel Craig in Bond’s black tie and assured audiences that we’ll still be seeing a release in November as scheduled.

Especially considering that Craig’s swan song (Swann song?) will be a continuation of his previous adventure as James Bond, I recently revisited Spectre. While fan reception to the 24th official film in the Bond series may have been as chilly as Bond’s trek through the Alps, I for one appreciated the assortment of versatile outfits consistent with Daniel Craig’s accessible approach to casual clothing from the start of his tenure.

One such outfit that emerged as one of the most popular (and regarding which I owe BAMF Style reader and friend Ryan an apology for this long-overdue response to his request!) was Bond’s dressed down layers upon arriving in Tangier with Dr. Madeleine Swann (Léa Seydoux). The sequence includes many of those elements that drew me into Craig’s portrayal back when Casino Royale premiered: the smaller “life of Bond” moments with a beautiful companion, an exotic location, a bit of humor, accessible style, and the booze and weaponry that underscore what keeps 007’s life dangerous.

While it may not seem like it, I do try to limit how much I write about James Bond; after all, anything you’d really need to learn about his clothing and accessories can be learned from pages like the fantastic Bond Suits and Bond Lifestyle. When I do decide to focus on Bond, I like to explore those scenes, outfits, or vignettes with some personal significance, and this sequence checks off all the BAMF Style-approved boxes.

After their explosive meeting in Austria, Dr. Swann brings Bond to the Hotel L’Américain in Tangier and the room once occupied by her terrorist mastermind father. The clues of Mr. White’s former tenancy aren’t immediately evident to 007, who yields only a dusty bottle of liquor for his efforts. He offers Madeleine a pour, which she turns down as she’s already deep into a bottle of red. Though she’s seeing double, the wine isn’t enough to for her to welcome Bond into her bed, shared hotel room be damned.

Madeleine: Don’t think for one moment this is where I fall into your arms, seeking solace for my dead daddy… You sit there, keep watch, that’s what you’re good at. Come anywhere near me, and I’ll kill you.
Bond: I don’t doubt it.

As Madeleine snoozes, Bond keeps his word and entertains himself by interrogating a mouse, though these hazy, half-drunken antics lead to his discovery of the secret room Mr. White had installed on the other side of the wall. (The reviewers behind the entertaining B Plus Movie Blog pointed out a question behind the logic here: “how does White get into this room? Seems like it was just behind the wall. Did he have to break and rebuild the wall every time he came here?”

Bond gains access by way of Craig’s preferred method of dealing with pesky walls as established back in Casino Royale and leads the now-awake Madeleine into what was evidently a very personal space for Mr. White where the reclusive terrorist stashed extra passports, family mementos, automatic weapons, and VHS tapes.

What’d He Wear?

Daniel Craig’s Bond arrives in Tangier wearing what could be argued an update of the last time the character had visited the city in The Living Daylights. In that film, Timothy Dalton had dressed for a mock assassination in a beige bomber-style jacket, a navy polo shirt with a long placket, beige pleated trousers, and brown boat shoes, even briefly donning a pair of sunglasses when attempting to make his escape.

Nearly thirty years later, Craig’s Bond is back in Morocco in what could possibly be a tribute to his predecessor, a similarly toned zip-up casual jacket and trousers with a somewhat unorthodox navy blue polo shirt, though costume designer Jany Temime shared that this was not a direct inspiration in an interview with The Bond Experience.

Coincidence or not, this wouldn’t be the last outfit in Spectre that appears to pay homage to Bonds of generations past; consider the parallels between Craig’s dark mock-neck jumpers and Roger Moore’s black turtleneck for the climactic battle in Live and Let Die or between Craig’s light brown odd jacket, trousers, and knitted tie with Connery’s similarly shaded tweed hacking jacket in Goldfinger. The case could even be made between Craig’s black three-piece suit, white shirt, and black tie for a gangster’s funeral in Rome and Connery taking a similar sartorial approach in his dealings with a mob-connected Las Vegas funeral home in Diamonds are Forever.

Between Timothy Dalton in The Living Daylights and Daniel Craig in Spectre, the Bond franchise makes it very clear what sort of attire is expected for traveling to Morocco.

At this point—almost five years after Spectre has been released—most of the outfit itself has been well-documented, between an extensively detailed article by Matt Spaiser for Bond Suits (the foremost authority on all things related to Bond’s clothing), my friend Iconic Alternatives (the best source for budget-friendly alternatives to Bond’s screen-worn gear), and Bond Lifestyle (an established go-to for all accessories and items in the 007-verse) as well as some of the original manufacturers themselves.

One of these manufacturers was Matchless London, which prides itself as one of the oldest British motorcycle companies, having produced its first motorcycle in 1899 and soon following that up with its own line of clothing and outerwear focused on rider safety.

My friend Shawn Michael Bongiorno reconstructs Craig’s Morocco outfit from Spectre with the Matchless “Craig Blouson”, Orlebar Brown “Felix” polo shirt, Banana Republic trousers, Aldo boots, screen-accurate Tom Ford “Henry” sunglasses, and Invicta dive watch on NATO strap.

Matchless wisely capitalized on the fact that they made the tan suede jacket worn by Daniel Craig in these scenes, producing a limited run of 700 jackets marketed as the “Craig Blouson”. Essentially similar to the screen-worn jacket, these jackets only different with the addition of a small brass plaque with the brand’s “winged M” logo sewn onto the upper left sleeve directly atop the distinctive vented seam that runs the length of each sleeve. (Though Craig’s screen-worn jacket lacks this conspicuous branding, he has no problem drinking what is clearly a bottle of Heineken later that evening!)

Once I determined that I would be writing about Craig’s Moroccan casual wear, I checked in with my friend Shawn Michael Bongiorno, whose stylish Instagram account is worth a follow! I knew Shawn had one of Matchless’ original run of Craig Blousons, which he had once described as “like a glove for your body” as far as comfort, and I wanted to know more about what he thought. “It’s amazing how thin and light they made the suede while still extremely durable,” Shawn elaborated. “They really took a chance at something different, and it paid off big time.”

Craig’s screen-worn jacket was made of tan suede leather, lined in viscose, and styled in a very minimalist fashion. The soft standing collar that folds down toward the front and has a small hook closure. There are two slanted hand pockets, bisected by a faint stitch around the abdomen, from which the jacket is darted on the right and left sides of the back to pull in the jacket at the waist for a more athletic silhouette. The set-in sleeves are detailed with a stitched-over vertical vent that runs the length of each, though they’re otherwise unadorned at the cuffs with no tabs, buttons, snaps, or zips.

More about the Matchless jacket specifically can be read at Bond Lifestyle or Iconic Alternatives. You can also see the brand’s current expanded “Craig Collection” at the Matchless site.

Some have argued that Craig’s jacket may be excessively heavy for the Moroccan mid-day heat, however we know that Spectre‘s primary action is set through November as it all began with the Día de Muerto celebration in Mexico. While I’ve never traveled to this region myself, I don’t think it would be unreasonable for Bond to arrive wearing this relatively lightweight jacket over his short-sleeved polo in a city where the daily mean temperature for the month is around 60.6°F.

Dr. Swann and Bond arrive in style.

Spectre continued the tradition from Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace that dressed down Daniel Craig’s Bond in navy blue short-sleeved polos. The shirt that Craig wears for 007’s arrival in Tangier was made by Tom Ford, who had made Craig’s suits and much of his luxury wardrobe as Bond dating back to Quantum of Solace.

Made from a pique-knit blend of 57% cotton and 43% viscose rayon, this Italian-made shirt is unique detailed with an open V-neck similar to what is frequently described by many—including Iconic Alternatives—as a “Johnny collar”. The banded-end short sleeves and the long ribbing around the waist hem flatter the athletic physique that Craig had cultivated for the role.

When a guy like James Bond says he wants to take you to “a little hole in the wall”, he really means it!

Spectre allows Bond to realistically cycle through his clothing, rewearing tested-and-true pieces from his wardrobe rather than debuting a new outfit for every situation. In fact, aside from a romantic evening on the train that calls for black tie, Bond never changes any part of his clothing from the waist down during his and Madeleine’s entire journey through Morocco. (Aside from, one would hope and expect, his underwear and socks.)

The trousers and belt have been identified as products by Brunello Cucinelli, the Italian luxury “philosopher-designer” who launched his now globally renowned brand with his line of brightly colored cashmere sweaters in the late 1970s. (For what it’s worth, Bond Lifestyle has identified the product numbers as M067DF1050 C1581 and MAUIB324 C4001 for the trousers and belt, respectively.)

Chino-style trousers, often shorthanded to “khakis” even when not strictly khaki in color, have emerged in recent decades as some of the most versatile trousers a gent can have in his wardrobe, a versatility illustrated by Craig’s Bond who wears them effectively with this navy polo and suede jacket as well as a linen sports coat, white shirt, and tie. (In linking this outfit, I realize I wrote about it four years ago today; something about the 00-7th of September must bring out the Spectre fan in me.)

Dubbed the “Aged Gabardine Chino” by Brunello Cucinelli, these light taupe flat front trousers were constructed of 100% cotton gabardine with a gently faded effect as reflected in their marketing nomenclature. The lower rise of these trousers follows modern trends, and they have a slim and straight cut through the legs down to the self-cuffed bottoms. In addition to the slanted side pockets, there are two back pockets that each close through a single button. Though not an exact match, Cucinelli offers pima cotton gabardine flat front trousers with self-cuffed bottoms on its site catalog as of September 2020, with the “dove gray” color looking to be the closest match to Craig’s screen-worn pair. You can also look into the fine options explored by Iconic Alternatives.

The trousers have six belt loops, through which Bond wears the brown woven leather Cucinelli belt. Unlike some fully-braided leather belts, this one has a solid tab with holes for the polished gold buckle’s single prong.

Bond wears napped leather lace-up ankle boots, specifically the J. Crew “Kenton” model inspired by classic military service boots, specifically USMC “boondockers” from the World War II era. Constructed of “sahara” tan suede uppers with Goodyear-welted brick red mini-lugged “EVA” soles, these plain-toe boots have five-eyelet derby-style open lacing with three sets of brass speed hooks at the top of the short, ankle-high shaft.

Bond protects his eyes from the Moroccan sunlight with a pair of Tom Ford FT0248 Vintage Henry Wayfarer sunglasses, though the nomenclature is somewhat misleading as the “Havana” tortoise acetate frame shares more in common with the traditional browline-style Shuron Ronsirs and Ray-Ban Clubmaster models than the Wayfarer shape of Risky Business fame. The color code 52A of Bond’s sunglasses suggests smoke-colored lenses with gunmetal inserts along the bottom rims. Popularized by their use in Spectre, these are still available from the Tom Ford site for $430 as of September 2020, although some scavengers may have better luck scouring Amazon. More information is available on James Bond Lifestyle.

Spectre also marked the 20th anniversary of the Bond wearing Omega watches, and Daniel Craig works his way through Morocco with an Omega Seamaster 300 dive watch on his wrist. Powered by the Omega Master Co-Axial calibre 8400 movement, this watch has a brushed steel 41mm case, bi-directional black ceramic bezel with 0-11 hour markers (with a 0 at the 12:00 position), and a black dial with white hour markers at 3, 6, and 9 o’clock, strapped to his left wrist on a black-and-gray striped NATO strap. You can read more about the screen-worn watch and the SPECTRE Limited Edition model (reference 233.32.31.21.01.001)—sold to the public in a limited release of 7,007 pieces—at James Bond Lifestyle.

As James and Madeleine continue their journey by train, he wears the same outfit but has swapped in a fresh shirt, which Bond Suits suggested to be the “Morton” from Bond-approved brand Orlebar Brown, further investigated in a video by David Zaritsky for The Bond Experience.

Though long-sleeved, this light blue shirt is constructed from end-on-end linen to still wear cooly and comfortably under Bond’s suede jacket. It has a short point collar, plain “French placket” front, and adjustable button cuffs.

Especially given Madeleine’s firearm-related trauma, it might have been nice if he could have given her a head’s up that he was about to plop a 9mm on the table between them.

The Guns

As expected, James Bond keeps his familiar Walther PPK semi-automatic pistol, carried in the cognac suede Vega IB333 inside-the-waistband (IWB) holster and notably “wielded” against the mouse that scurries across the floor of their hotel room. Bond’s suede Vega IWB holster had made its first appearance with his larger Walther P99 in Casino Royale, making its welcome return for the more compact PPK six years later in Skyfall.

Once Bond gets a sense of what he and Madeleine will be up against after leaving Tangier, he finds her in her compartment aboard the train and sits across from her, placing a SIG-Sauer P226R on the table in front of them. While this is a hell of a way to greet someone, she is unfazed: “I hate guns.”

Also unfazed, Bond proceeds to give her an impromptu lesson in this particular weapon, its basic parts, and how to handle it:

SIG 226. Front sight, rear sight, hammer. Just point it, squeeze the trigger, and try not to close your eyes.

When there’s no Major Boothroyd around, Bond has to dole out the firearms instructions himself.

Madeleine leans back in her seat with a sigh and, once Professor Bond has completed his lesson, releases the magazine, ejects the round from the chamber, and clicks the now-empty pistol. “I don’t have to teach you anything, do I?” Bond suggests in amazement.

“A man once came to our house to kill my father,” Madeleine explains. “He didn’t know I was upstairs, playing in my bedroom. Or that Papa kept a Beretta nine-millimeter under the sink with the bleach… that’s why I hate guns.”

Bond smirks, confident in the knowledge that he has little to worry about as far as Madeleine’s skills in self-defense are concerned.

As a commander in the British Royal Navy and “former SAS type”, Bond would have been intrinsically familiar with the SIG-Sauer P226 service pistol and its accessory rail-equipped variant, the P226R, which had been adopted by the British armed forces in 2007. A non-rail P226 was extensively used in Quantum of Solace, first as the preferred sidearm of M’s personal bodyguard Craig Mitchell and then by Bond himself for the final act after he disarms an agent sent to arrest him and carries it into battle at Hotel Perla De Las Dunas. Developed in the mid-1980s as an evolution of the .45-caliber P220, the full-sized P226 was first chambered in 9x19mm Parabellum with .357 SIG and .40 S&W offerings available as those cartridges were developed over the following decades.

What to Imbibe

Bond begins his night of drinking with a bottle he digs out of its hiding place in Mr. White’s hotel room. Based on the glazed glass, the presumably clear contents, and the much-publicized brand partnership, I had assumed this was a bottle of Belvedere vodka, but it appears to ultimately be something else.

Daniel Craig returns as James Bond in No Time to Pour.

Of much less question is the bottle of Heineken, returning after making its somewhat controversial series debut as Bond’s lager of choice in Skyfall. Bond’s late night beer helps him discover Mr. White’s hidden space behind the hotel room when he pours some out from a bottle and watches it disappear into a mouse hole.

While the mouse luckily survives the encounter, James Bond should know better than to draw a loaded firearm after he’s been drinking!

How to Get the Look

Daniel Craig as James Bond in Spectre (2015)

Daniel Craig’s casual wear continues to be a sartorial standout of his James Bond tenure in Spectre, paying homage to his 007 forebears with this dressed-down outfit that blends rugged functionality with masculine elegance.

• Tan suede zip-up jacket with short standing collar, slanted side pockets, and set-in sleeves with plain cuffs
  • Matchless
• Navy cotton/viscose rayon blend pique knit “Johnny collar” V-neck short-sleeve polo shirt
  • Tom Ford
• Khaki cotton gabardine flat front straight-leg chino trousers with six belt loops, pointed waistband tab, slanted side pockets, button-through back pockets, and plain-hemmed bottoms
  • Brunello Cucinelli
• Brown woven leather tab-ended belt with polished gold rectangular single-prong buckle
  • Brunello Cucinelli
• Vega IB333 cognac-colored suede IWB holster, for Walther PPK
• Tan sueded leather 5-eyelet, 3-hook plain-toe ankle boots with brick red EVA soles
  • J. Crew “Kenton”
• Tom Ford “Henry Vintage Wayfarer” FT0248 acetate-framed browline sunglasses with smoke lenses and gunmetal rims
• Omega Seamaster 300 SPECTRE Limited Edition (233.32.41.21.01.001) stainless steel wristwatch with black dial (and “lollipop” seconds hand) on black-and-gray striped NATO strap

Do Yourself a Favor and…

Check out the movie.

The Quote

I promised him I’d protect you. The first thing to do is to teach you how to protect yourself.

Daniel Craig as James Bond in Casino Royale (2006). Photo by Greg Williams.

Vitals

Daniel Craig as James Bond, tough British government agent

Lahore, Pakistan, Summer 2005

Film: Casino Royale
Release Date: November 14, 2006
Director: Martin Campbell
Costume Designer: Lindy Hemming

Background

On the 00-7th of August, with just two months until Daniel Craig’s final Bond movie will [likely] be released, I wanted to reflect on the start of his tenure and also include some insights from my friend Caleb Daniels, who many in the Bond fan-iverse know as the creator of the @CommandoBond Instagram and blog, discussing the then-significant return of 007’s trademark Walther PPK!

Interestingly, both of the last two James Bond actors have been introduced in their first films with pre-credits sequences that included commode-related combat, each fortelling the tone of respective actor’s characterization. In GoldenEye, Pierce Brosnan cheekily grins as he “drops in” to knock out an indisposed Soviet henchman, while Daniel Craig’s hard-hitting Bond knocks down several stalls (literally breaking down barriers, if you will) in a hard-fought hand-to-hand brawl to the death, a potentially polarizing sequence for long-time fans of the franchise.

Dryden: How did he die?
Bond: Your contact? Not well…

As we soon learn, this was Bond’s first of two kills required before he could attain 00 status. He nearly drowns his nemesis in a bathroom sink, only for the man to suddenly scramble for his gun. Spying the movement in his peripheral, Bond picks up his own discarded Walther PPK and fires it directly at the camera to kick off the opening credits scored by Chris Cornell’s “You Know My Name”, simultaneously rebooting the iconic “gunbarrel sequence” that had been a series signature since the first James Bond film, Dr. No.

The original screenplay, set photography, and a deleted scene included on some home video releases now show that the fast-moving black-and-white sequence seen on screen was actually meant to be considerably longer. We begin at a cricket match in Lahore, the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab, where Bond had been stalking crooked MI6 deputy Dryden’s doomed contact Fisher (Doud Shah), ultimately following him through the locker room into the bathroom where Fisher would meet his ultimate demise. In my opinion, these extended scenes were wisely trimmed to focus more on contextualizing the confrontation between Bond and Dryden, punctuating their conversation with the hard-hitting brutality of our new Bond.

What’d He Wear?

Consistent with the concept of Casino Royale rebooting the franchise, the James Bond character regresses from the debonair agent we know to a less sophisticated “blunt instrument”; after all, this is truly the earliest we see of Bond in the rebooted chronology. Granted, his light layers of linen are contextually appropriate for the year-round heat of Pakistan, and he’s certainly better dressed than some, such as the ill-fated Fisher.

Still, the wrinkled linen, the short-sleeved shirt worn tieless, that hefty belt, and the suede boots don’t complete the traditional image we have of James Bond wearing a suit, though this unsophisticated foundation built in the prologue pays off in the epilogue as a more polished 007 steps onto the screen, immaculate in his tailored three-piece Brioni suit, striped shirt, and perfectly knotted tie, assuring both the wounded Mr. White and the wowed audience that the name is, indeed, “Bond… James Bond.”

James Bond begins and ends Casino Royale wearing a navy suit and light blue shirt while holding an enemy at gunpoint, though the differences between each outfit underline the significance of his sartorial journey.

The Fisher fight scenes are presented in a high-contrast black-and-white, though the prominently seen production photography—including the shot featured on the cover of Greg Williams’ illustrated volume Bond on Set—shows us that the linen suiting is navy blue, perhaps chosen to evoke the color of the tropical worsted suit often favored by the literary Bond in Ian Fleming’s novels. After all, Casino Royale was the first Bond movie to feature one of Fleming’s titles in nearly 20 years, and Daniel Craig’s characterization had been heralded as a return to the rougher-edged character of the books.

In their excellent new book, From Tailors With Love: An Evolution of Menswear Through the Bond Films, Peter Brooker and Matt Spaiser contrast how “in the films prior to Casino Royale, Bond is typically comfortable in his suits and takes pride in the clothes he wears,” while “Craig’s less-experienced Bond… draws parallels with Fleming’s Bond here—anti-establishment and at odds with the formalities expected of him.”

Writing about this suit specifically for his comprehensive blog Bond Suits, Spaiser identifies this suit as crafted by an English tailor rather than the Brioni suit that Bond would later wear, a subtle touch of verisimilitude suggesting that Bond wouldn’t yet have the budget to afford a suit from the esteemed Italian fashion house.

The single-breasted jacket’s sporty details like the edge-stitched notch lapels and patch pockets on the hips are consistent with the coarse linen suiting to signal that this casual suit can be more appropriately worn dressed down than a more conservative business suit. The two-button jacket also has a wide-welted breast pocket, soft shoulders, four-button cuffs, and long double vents.

Fisher would need to do a lot more than just sing “Happy Birthday” while washing his hands after this…

Bond’s short-sleeved shirt was likely chosen for practical reasons, allowing Bond to beat the heat, while taking into consideration that he wasn’t yet at the level of sartorial sophistication to care about the impact of sweat on the lining of his suit jacket. Coincidentally (or not), the choice also recalls Ian Fleming’s controversial decision to outfit the literary Bond in “sleeveless”—meaning short-sleeved—shirts under his suits, particularly while serving in the warmth of Jamaica during the events of Doctor No, mirroring the author’s own preferences.

The shirt is constructed from linen or a linen-and-cotton blend, woven fil-à-fil (“end-on-end”) with white and blue warp and weft threads to create a heathered light-blue effect. The shirt has a front placket and a high two-button collar.

Daniel Craig behind the scenes of the cricket match sequence, as originally featured on JustJared.

The trousers have a flat front and appear to be finished on the bottoms with turn-ups (cuffs). There are side pockets with openings placed along the seams but no back pockets.

Consistent with the fashions of the mid-2000s, Bond’s trousers have a fuller fit that also allows linen to better “perform” its function of allowing the air to breeze through the fabric and keep its wearer cool… at least cooler than if the fabric was form-fitting and repressively warm agains the wearer’s skin.

Bond holds up his trousers with a wide dark brown leather belt that has a large gunmetal single-prong buckle. While sartorial purists may have already been reeling in horror at Bond’s attire (a suit with no tie!), surely this unglamorous belt would send them into hysterics. Aside from creating the image of a less-polished Bond, the chunky belt may have served a more practical purpose of holding the agent’s Walther PPK against his waistband, as he doesn’t appear to be wearing a holster… but more on that later!

Though the shades of the leather don’t match—nor would they need to—the belt coordinates with his tobacco brown suede two-eyelet chukka boots, worn with dark socks.

Bond drags Fisher through the bathroom to ensure his inelegant demise… though it may also be the demise of Bond’s boots, as there’s little hope for rescuing suede uppers after dragging them through the leaky water spouted from a broken urinal.

Bond has yet to adopt the luxurious Brioni and Turnbull & Asser wardrobe that would be featured later in Casino Royale, which leaves the question of his watch. Not prominently featured in the scene, it would be reasonable to question if Bond indeed wears one of his signature Omegas, though the nature of the franchise’s product placement agreement would likely preclude Daniel Craig from appearing on screen wearing any timepiece but an Omega.

Based on the glimpse we get on screen and blurred on some behind-the-scenes set photography, it’s safe to deduce that Bond is already wearing the Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean “Big Size” 2900.50.91 chronometer on the sporty black rubber strap, as appropriate for diving as the watch itself in its 45.5mm stainless steel case with the black bezel, black dial, and scratch-resistant, anti-reflective domed sapphire crystal.

Water-resistant down to 600 meters, Bond’s Omega fares better than Fisher after this brief foray into the bathroom sink basin.

To explore how Bond may have been—or should have been—carrying his famous Walther PPK, please enjoy the below insight from Caleb of Commando Bond:

Caleb of @CommandoBond models his own Walther PPK, carried in a shoulder holster as may have been most efficient for Bond during this sequence.

One of the lingering questions for me constantly is how James Bond carries his equipment in the field. During the Madagascar-set free-running sequence, we see 007 carrying at the 4 o’clock inside the waistband (IWB) position with his P99 Gen 1. But is that also how he elects to carry his PPK during the pre-titles?

Personally, I think probably not. The jacket in this scene is double- rather than single-vented, which makes a huge difference in concealability. I make this claim because a double vent leaves itself vulnerable to exposing the firearm while you go through your daily tasks; it would be very awkward for Bond to be explaining that away to somebody during the cricket match seen in the deleted portion of the opening titles.

For example, say Bond was carrying this way in Casino Royale as he scopes out the One&Only Ocean club. Recall that he pretends to lace his shoes as he inspects the camera placement. If he was still wearing his coat (which was double vented, incidentally, making it a perfect candidate for this example!) the fabric would have casually draped around the handgun as he knelt, keeping it mostly concealed. However, upon rising, the vent would likely catch on the beavertail or grip of the PPK which would prevent it from falling back to its original position, leaving the handgun entirely exposed. I have seen this happen many times, and each time I have I wince for the individual who made that choice. As Bond constantly verifies his concealment prior to going out into the world (as he does in the novel Casino Royale) I would argue that this is something he would’ve noticed and have not done.

I would rather argue that he is utilizing a shoulder holster in conjunction with his softer-cut linen jacket. The jacket’s drape would effectively conceal the gun and provide Bond with ample access to it as well.

Read more of Caleb’s insights in Commando Bond’s most recent post, “How to Carry in a Suit (Without Ruining the Lines)”.

Daniel Craig aims Bond’s trademark Walther PPK during a break filming Casino Royale.

The Gun

The Walther PPK returned to the James Bond franchise with little fanfare after it hadn’t been seen in 007’s hands for nearly a decade since Pierce Brosnan swapped it out for a new P99 in Tomorrow Never Dies.

Craig’s Bond only uses the PPK during the opening sequence, as he too would carry the more modern P99 as his standard sidearm after he becomes a full 00 agent through the end of Casino Royale. (Beginning with Quantum of Solace, Craig’s Bond would again carry the PPK through the end of his tenure.)

To delve more deeply into the PPK’s history and relevance, I again share the wisdom of Caleb from Commando Bond:

Undoubtedly one of the most iconic handguns of the 20th Century, the Walther PPK has a unique legacy as both the first true concealed carry pistol and 007’s most constant companion. Its stunning profile catches both the eye and the imagination. From the first scenes of Dr. No, we hear just why Bond ought to carry the Walther. Fleming’s prose, perfectly translated to the screen, captured our imaginations and immediately forged an unbreakable bond between 007 and the PPK. In Casino Royale, we only see the handgun during this brief and violent portion of the pre-titles sequence, and with its final shot in the film, we get the movie’s take on the gunbarrel, and the powerful introduction of Chris Cornell’s “You Know My Name.”

The Walther PPK chambered in 7.65mm is a seven-round capacity, double/single action pistol designed in 1929 by Walther to resolve a glaring hole in the market. At the time of its creation, most defensive handguns were pocket sized, .25 Autos, (like Bond’s original carry, the Beretta 418) or they were full-framed handguns that were less suited for the deep concealment required of an MI6 agent.

In 1929 the first PPKs found their way to market, filling this huge gap. They were intentionally designed to be carried covertly and became the first real concealed carry pistols. The PPK was designed with all the shortcomings of the current product offerings in mind and was a massive commercial success because of it. While striker-fired handguns are some of the safest and most reliable today, used worldwide by LEOs and military forces, they were gaining a very negative reputation at the turn of the century. All of this was in Fritz Walther’s mind as he began designing the PPK. After years of designing and beta-testing, the PPK was released in 1929. It featured an exposed hammer, manual safety (which also functioned as a de-cocking lever), and a loaded chamber indicator. All three of these items were intentionally included to create something entirely new for the market, something fit for a 00.

You can read more about the Walther PPK in Commando Bond’s first blog post, “An Eternal Bond: James Bond & the Walther PPK”.

Bond and Fisher, armed respectively with their PPK and USP Compact, confront each other in the restroom of the Lahore cricket match. Photo sourced from Thunderballs archive at thunderballs.org.

Of note, the Heckler & Koch USP Compact was evidently a favored pistol among Bond’s early enemies in Casino Royale, drawn first by Fisher to clear the bathroom and then by Mollaka the bombmaker in Madagascar.

Bond and Fisher grapple for the weapon, only for it to discharge and destroy a sink next to them before Bond smacks it out of the struggling Fisher’s hands. Fisher makes one final grab for his firearm just in time for Bond to spin around with his PPK and…

You know his name…

Daniel Craig as James Bond in Casino Royale (2006). Photo sourced from Thunderballs archive at thunderballs.org.

How to Get the Look

James Bond’s sense of sartorial sophistication was rebooted with the franchise itself at the start of Casino Royale when we see Daniel Craig dressed for a deadly warm-weather mission in a wrinkled navy linen suit, open-necked short-sleeve shirt sans tie, and suede boots, a decent and contextually appropriate outfit in itself but not close to the tailored perfection we would eventually expect from agent 007.

• Navy linen suit:
  • Single-breasted 2-button jacket with wide-welted breast pocket, patch hip pockets, 4-button cuffs, long double vents
  • Flat front trousers with belt loops, side pockets, and plain-hemmed bottoms
• Light blue linen/cotton short-sleeved shirt with tall 2-button collar and front placket
• Wide dark brown leather belt with large gunmetal single-prong buckle
• Tobacco brown suede 2-eyelet chukka boots
• Dark socks
• Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean “Big Size” 2900.50.91 on a large black rubber strap

Do Yourself a Favor and…

Check out the movie, and watch the extended version of the opening sequence to see the full context of Bond’s brutal fight against Fisher.

I also invite readers to check out the blogs of fellow Bond community experts, such as Commando Bond (who contributed to this particular post) and the estimable Bond Suits.

The post Casino Royale: Bond’s Navy Linen Pre-Credits Suit appeared first on BAMF Style.

Daniel Craig as James Bond in Spectre (2015)

Vitals

Daniel Craig as James Bond, British government agent

London, November 2015

Film: Spectre
Release Date: October 25, 2015
Director: Sam Mendes
Costume Designer: Jany Temime

WARNING! Spectre spoilers ahead!
(And, if you’ve already seen No Time to Die, please try to avoid adding any spoilers in the comments!)

Background

M: It’s good to have you back, 007.
Bond: Sir.

After waiting more than a year and a half of delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic, No Time to Die is finally arriving in U.S. theaters tomorrow! To celebrate on the 00-7th of October, let’s check in on the last time we saw Mr. Bond in action.

Spectre—Daniel Craig’s fourth and penultimate film as 007—reintroduced us to his long-time nemesis and chief of the international terrorist organization SPECTRE, Ernst Stavro Blofeld (Christoph Waltz). Bond and Blofeld’s last confrontation in Morocco had left the villain with his eye scarred and his thirst for Bond’s blood renewed. Teaming up with an action-oriented M (Ralph Fiennes), Miss Moneypenny (Naomie Harris), Q (Ben Whishaw), and chief of staff Bill Tanner (Rory Kinnear), Bond and his latest love interest Madeleine Swann (Léa Seydoux) plan to dismantle Blofeld’s attempt to control their intelligence… only to be thwarted when SPECTRE operatives kidnap Madeleine and stash her in the bowels of MI6 headquarters, which had been scheduled for demolition after it was bombed during the events of Skyfall.

Will Bond have the opportunity to save Madeleine and himself? Will there be a conveniently located net in case he and Madeleine need to jump to safety? Will he show Blofeld mercy or exact vengeance on “the author of all [his] pain”? (If you’ve already seen Spectre, then you already know!)

What’d He Wear?

One additional brief yet stylish vignette that follows this set-piece in Spectre, but the last time we truly saw 007 in action was during this London-set sequence that culminated on the Westminster Bridge. Bond dresses appropriately for an urban-set evening adventure, his kit tactical enough to suit the heavy action to follow while also stylish enough that it wouldn’t raise eyebrows like his combat-oriented N.Peal rig in No Time to Die.

As with all of Bond’s attire, this outfit has been thoroughly examined by Matt Spaiser on his masterful blog Bond Suits, where parallels were drawn to the character’s heritage—specifically vis-à-vis Roger Moore’s black turtleneck in Live and Let Die—as well as Craig’s sartorial antecedent, Steve McQueen.

In addition to these earlier icons, Bond’s dark zip-up casual jacket over a dark jumper also reminded me of his contemporary action hero Jason Bourne, particularly as Matt Damon was dressed for the first three entries in the Bourne trilogy, from his navy mock-neck in The Bourne Identity to the black waist-length jacket over yet another set of sweaters in The Bourne Ultimatum.

For better or worse, the Bond franchise has always tapped into the cinematic zeitgeist of its moment (e.g., blaxploitation in Live and Let Die then sending Roger Moore to space by decade’s end in Moonraker), and the overlap of Daniel Craig’s tenure with the popularity of the fast-moving, realism-driven action of the Bourne series would understandably result in some seepage into 007’s world, whether that be the shaky-cam fight scenes of Quantum of Solace or Bond’s understated wardrobe for the finale of Spectre.

Bond wears a close-fitting racer-style jacket by John Varvatos made from a navy blue goat suede that’s so dark it almost appears black on screen, similar in philosophy to the midnight-hued tuxedoes out hero is known to favor. (The only time I was able to significantly discern any blue was here, under the harsh lighting of the SPECTRE kidnappers’ van as 007 is being trussed and delivered to MI6 headquarters.)

The Varvatos jacket is a fashionable evolution of the “café racer” style that had evolved in mid-20th century England as a simplified version of busier motorcycle jackets like the heavy leather Schott Perfecto with their asymmetrical front-zips and excessive snaps, straps, and flaps.

Varvatos had marketed their fully lined Racer Jacket commercially as “a double agent-approved style from the archives of MI6,” perhaps doing Mr. Bond a disservice in questioning his loyalty to the Brits… though the simplified standing collar—sans the throat-latch strap featured on many racer jackets—echoes the mandarin collars of the “Mao jackets” traditionally associated with Bond villains like Blofeld. Indeed, Spectre leans into the similarities between Bond and his signature nemesis in the annals of MI6, the mirror image against the bullet-ridden glass not so subtly offering the audience a “we’re not so different, you and I” moment as brother faces down brother.

Brother vs. brother… and standing collar vs. standing collar. Note that Blofeld’s jacket has a throat latch not unlike those frequently found on racer jackets, though Bond’s minimalist John Varvatos jacket has only a simplified standing collar.

Bond’s jacket has a two-way matte gunmetal zipper that extends all the way from the waist hem up to the top of the standing collar. The minimalist styling avoids offering any items that could snag or otherwise interfere over the course of any action, aside from the zippered gauntlet cuffs that are a traditional feature of racer jackets. Stitching around the front of the jacket’s mid-body separates the reinforced darts above it the vertical slit-like entries for the hand pockets below, while a vertical seam connects the two back pieces.

Read more about this jacket at James Bond Lifestyle.

Bond had started wearing N.Peal knitwear in Skyfall, increasing how much of his wardrobe had come from this British brand up through No Time to Die, which features a commando-style outfit consisting almost entirely of N.Peal goods. Indeed, N.Peal has smartly capitalized on its growing association with the Bond franchise, introducing its “007 Collection” that includes knitwear inspired by and—in some cases—directly from the movies.

Spectre featured a trio of sweaters by N.Peal: one light gray cable-knit turtleneck and two lighter-weight “NPG-300 Fine Gauge” mockneck jumpers made from a luxurious blend of 70% merino wool and 30% silk. The turtleneck and one of the mocknecks—in a shade marketed as “lapis blue”—were each worn for snowy scenes set in Austria.

The nighttime action at the climax of Spectre calls for 007 to dress for work under cover of darkness, so he pulls on his second of these fine-gauge mocknecks in a dark charcoal gray. As Matt Spaiser has observed for Bond Suits, “grey is actually a little better for hiding in the dark than true black is.” As of October 2021, N.Peal still offers this charcoal mockneck jumper among its 007 Collection.

The mockneck is a smart alternative to the full turtleneck, the reduced folds around his neck giving him a tactical advantage (despite Sterling Archer’s insistence on the full turtleneck as a “tactile-neck”) as well as preventing him from overheating during the running, jumping, and shooting required of an action hero. The banded mockneck is narrowly ribbed like the cuffs and waist hem, which Bond tucks in despite its untucked appearance in promotional photography.

The fit and color suggest an update of the black turtleneck worn by Roger Moore for his debut as Bond in Live and Let Die, and marketing for Spectre capitalized on this by featuring Daniel Craig wearing his smooth dark brown leather shoulder holster over this form-fitting jumper. (Since Bond frequently tucks his Walther PPK under his left arm, we can assume he’s wearing—or at least meant to be wearing—this same shoulder holster on screen.)

Read more about this mockneck at James Bond Lifestyle.

One of the earliest released promotional shots from Spectre, Daniel Craig wearing his shoulder holster over a dark mock-neck recalled Roger Moore’s debut as 007 and—outside the Bond franchise—Steve McQueen’s famous style in Bullitt.

The action-set climactic sequences of Bond’s previous two adventures—Quantum of Solace and Skyfall—had been set outside the city, allowing 007 to wear more tactically oriented trousers like denim jeans and corduroys, respectively. Though his clothing in London at the end of Spectre could hardly be confused with dressing for business, Bond still dresses more befitting the urban environment in a pair of gray-toned flat front trousers.

These trousers are micro-ticked in gray on black, the pattern providing a necessary contrast against the similarly shaded jumper. The maker has been identified by Neil Barrett, as mentioned by James Bond Lifestyle and Bond Suits, which described the viscose, nylon, polyester, and elastane construction among other details of the narrow fit. The trousers have Western-style frogmouth pockets, button-through back pockets, and tapered plain-hemmed bottoms with no break, showing his likely black socks. Bond holds his trousers up with a dark brown textured leather belt that closes through a gunmetal-finished single-prong buckle.

Getting dragged to a waiting van by Blofeld’s henchmen doesn’t bode well for the longevity of Bond’s life or his suede boots.

Steve McQueen’s influence on Daniel Craig’s style continues through his footwear, a pair of Sanders & Sanders “Hi-Top” two-eyelet ankle boots with snuff brown suede uppers and black crepe rubber soles. Known colloquially as “playboy boots”, these combine the chukka boot aesthetic and the desert boot’s characteristic crepe sole. McQueen wore his Hutton Original Playboys off- and on-screen throughout the first decade of his career, prominently seen in The Blob, Bullitt, and The Thomas Crown Affair, as well as his 1964 drive up the California coast as famously photographed by William Claxton.

Though Hutton has resumed production of the Portguese-made boots that the celebrated King of Cool made famous, Bond’s screen-worn boots were made by Sanders & Sanders, which—until recently—had been offered via Bond heritage brand Mason & Sons. You can still find Sanders boots for sale via Stuarts, or you can try your luck with the budget-friendly brand British Walkers via Amazon.

Read more about these boots at James Bond Lifestyle.

Brother vs. brother again, though Bond arguably has the upper hand this time. Were 007 more of a vengeful hero, he would have been in the perfect position to demand Blofeld kiss his foot, à la Red Grant.

As he had already detonated the bomb in his Q-issued Omega with the NATO strap, Bond brings back the Omega Seamaster Aqua Terra 150M Master Co-Axial that he had worn for the Día de Muertos opening sequence in Mexico. The Spectre-worn Aqua Terra has been identified as the model 231.10.42.21.03.003, an update of the Aqua Terra that Bond had worn in London three years earlier during the events of Skyfall.

Rather than some of the sportier Seamaster dive watches that have cycled through Bond’s collection, this Aqua Terra chronometer has a more formal presentation. The 41.5mm-wide case is a polished stainless steel, matching the 20mm-wide three-piece link bracelet. A plain fixed bezel encircles the blue dial under scratch-resistant crystal. The dial is detailed with luminous non-numeric hour markers, small Arabic numeral minute markers at five-minute intervals around the outer rim, and an asymmetric black date window at the 3 o’clock position.

Per its designation, this automatic chronometer is water-resistant down to 150 meters, a depth that fortunately goes untested during this sequence as it’s doubtful that Bond’s suede jacket would survive the plunge.

Read more about this watch at James Bond Lifestyle.

After his last confrontation with Blofeld in Morocco, Bond is forced to suffer the indignity of wearing an Omega that isn’t rigged by Q to double as an explosive device.

The Guns

Bond is briefly captured by SPECTRE henchmen, one of which carries a Heckler & Koch VP9 that Bond uses to swiftly dispatch the two thugs guarding him. According to IMFDB, Spectre is one of the first recorded instances of the pistol’s use on screen. (This scene wouldn’t be the first though, as Bond had earlier acquired a different VP9 from other SPECTRE henchmen while fighting in the Austrian snow.)

Aesthetically, the polymer-framed, striker-fired pistol somewhat resembles the Walther P99 that Bond had used beginning from Pierce Brosnan’s second 007 movie Tomorrow Never Dies through Daniel Craig’s debut in Casino Royale. However, the lightweight and ergonomic VP9 (referring to a “Volkspistole” chambered in 9×19 mm Parabellum) is a considerably newer design, introduced in June 2014 as an innovative replacement for the Bavarian State Police’s aging Heckler & Koch P7 pistol. In addition to the standard 9mm variant, which loads from 15- and 20-round magazines, Heckler & Koch also produces the VP40 variant in .40 S&W.

As I don’t have any firsthand experience with the VP9, I turned to my friend Caleb—who manages the excellent Commando Bond blog and Instagram—for more insight, featured here:

The VP9 features some of the most phenomenal ergonomics ever seen on a polymer handgun. Not only are the back-straps removable, but the side panels are as well, allowing users to build out a grip that truly suits their hands. When Heckler & Koch had first released this handgun, I had just begun working in the world of firearms. I remember literally saying “wow” under my breath when I first held this pistol. This love affair hasn’t stopped seven years later. In fact, I’ve only grown to appreciate it all the more. The feeling is indescribable, outside of that three letter word. Truth be told, it only gets better from there. The gun shoots like a dream. Straight out of the box, the trigger is a crisp 5.4-lb pull, with a reset travel distance of .12 inches, so short that follow up shots are easily made and are very true.

Eagle-eyed Bond fans might notice that this handgun shares many aesthetics with Bond’s favorite polymer framed 9mm, the Walther P99. This handgun revolutionized the polymer framed market, and its DNA still pulses through the veins of so many handguns today—not just Walthers! From the red striker ready indicator to the paddle magazine release and extreme attention to comfort, it’s no wonder this handgun found its way into Bond’s hands. While the VP9 was merely recovered by Bond from SPECTRE agents, it feels proper that a pistol that this love letter to 007’s first major carry transition found its way into a Bond film.

Despite finding himself surrounded by the evidence of his storied career, Bond keeps his VP9 trained ahead, ready to take down Blofeld… or his mirror image.

After he presumably empties the VP9 firing at Blofeld’s helicopter, Bond discards it and draws his own yet-unfired Walther PPK from its shoulder holster under his jacket. Walther introduced the blowback-operated PPK in the early 1930s as a more concealable variation of the otherwise similar Walther PP (“Polizeipistole“). The PPK may have remained the ignominious distinction as the Nazi pistol that Hitler had used to kill himself had it not been suggested by firearms expert Geoffrey Boothroyd as a reasonable replacement for the literary James Bond’s underpowered .25-caliber Beretta. Beginning with the novel Doctor No, Ian Fleming armed his secret agent with a Walther PPK, giving rise to one of the most iconic firearms of all time, known by name even by those otherwise unfamiliar with guns.

With some limited exceptions, the PPK has been primarily chambered in .32 ACP (7.65x17mm Browning SR) and .380 ACP (9x17mm Short); aside from his palm-reading PPK/S .380 in Skyfall, Bond generally carried the former, despite the relatively anemic qualities of .32-caliber ammunition in combat.

Though both Pierce Brosnan and Daniel Craig had briefly switched to the more modernized Walther P99 as stated, tradition returned the iconic PPK to Craig’s Bond in Quantum of Solace, even against the abundant smaller, lighter, and yet more powerful pistols that have been developed in the decades since Bond first appeared on screen. Compare the polymer-framed VP9 to the all-metal PPK; the VP9 weighs only four ounces more despite being a full-sized sidearm that carries twice the amount of rounds as the PPK (and considerably more powerful ammunition at that.)

Yet, Spectre continues Skyfall‘s motif of “sometimes the old ways are the best” by having Bond’s small-caliber PPK—an aging, short-barreled design—fire the well-placed shot that actually manages to bring down Blofeld’s helicopter. (True, the thing may have already been damaged a bit by the multiple rounds hitting it, but a single .32-caliber bullet fired from so far away doing that much damage? Bond must be good!)

Who knew the humble Walther PPK could technically serve as an anti-aircraft weapon?

Bond then catches up with an injured Blofeld, holding him at gunpoint with the PPK. “Finish it,” Blofeld insists, but Bond makes a show of dropping the PPK’s magazine out, clearing the chamber, then informing Blofeld:

Out of bullets.

Go Big or Go Home

M brings his skeleton crew to meet a now-rogue Bond at a safe house above “Hildebrand Prints & Rarities”, a subtle tribute to the Fleming short story “The Hildebrand Rarity” that may be otherwise difficult to shoehorn into the EON franchise as a title.

The MI6 team arrives with weapons and equipment in a khaki cotton duffel bag identified as a J. Crew Abingdon Weekender Bag. Nondescript enough to be carried through town without raising attention, the sturdy waxed cotton canvas construction evokes classic military and hunting gear, subtly serving M’s purpose of preparing Bond and his team for potential combat.

Accessed through a long top zipper, the bag’s central storage compartment is lined in light but durable olive cotton with a small zippered pocket along the top, plus additional pockets accessed on the outside. The bag is finished with brown leather accents and brass hardware from the carry handles and shoulder strap to the buckles that fasten down each side of the bag. Read more about this bag at James Bond Lifestyle.

M’s J. Crew Abingdon bag on the table beside them, Bond checks the load in his trusty Walther PPK.

I had a Leo-pointing-at-the-screen moment when I first saw Spectre in theaters back in October 2015, recognizing the J. Crew bag as the same khaki duffel bag that my sister and her husband had gifted me two years earlier for being part of their wedding. Indeed, this was one of the very few times I’d actually been ahead of the curve in owning the style from an aspirational character.

More than eight years and dozens of trips after I’d received my monogrammed J. Crew Abingdon Weekender bag, I can personally testify that it has withstood the rigors of travel—from connecting flights to road trips—with aplomb. As its name suggests, the carryon-compatible Weekender can pack all the essentials for several nights away from home, with the outside pockets providing easy access to handy travel items whether you’re reaching into the back seat for sunglasses or under your plane’s seat for AirPods.

Yours truly recreates a Spectre moment with the khaki waxed cotton J. Crew Abingdon Weekender bag. (Also featured: a black “veggie suede” Banana Republic bomber jacket, black merino wool Gap turtleneck, steel Invicta Pro Diver “Submariner-tribute” watch, Walther P99AS and cognac suede Vega IWB holster.)

In addition to M’s Glock 17 pistol and the other weapons and equipment noted, the scene also shows us a small black knife, which Bond evidently carries clipped to the right side of his trousers as we see when he flips it out to release Madeleine from her binds after discovering her in MI6 headquarters. This is a Gerber 06 Automatic S30V Drop Point knife, activated by a button that flicks out the black-finished stainless steel 3.7″-long blade; Gerber offered the knife with both the “Drop Point” and angular “Tanto” blade configurations. When the blade closes into the smooth grooved aluminum handle, the 6.3-ounce knife measures only 4.8″ long.

As with the VP9, I knew Caleb of Commando Bond would have some firsthand insight from his experience carrying and using the Gerber 06 Auto:

This blade is another unsung hero of the Craig era though, like the CRKT Sting from Quantum of Solace, we don’t see a whole lot of it. However, after carrying it daily for a year, I’ve learned that this blade, just like the Sting, has real-world applications and certainly earned its right to be in a Bond film. One of the things I’ve grown to deeply appreciate about this knife is the safety mechanism. While that may seem silly on a blade, I’ve seen many instances of auto-opening knives deploying inside of pockets or accidentally into a hand without one. Those blades are no joke, and with all the violent action we see Craig’s Bond take part in (let’s not forget all of those intense injuries the man has experienced to bring us such amazing pieces of cinema), the word “embarrassing” wouldn’t quite surmise how disappointing it would be for Bond to impale himself accidentally.

What I’ve also been pleasantly surprised to learn is that the 06 Auto is very popular with the military community, as they have been issued to them. Many of the veterans I work with speak very highly about these knives and love sharing brief memories of their usage as a tool during deployments. From the oversized button and full-size grip to the long, thick blade, this knife is meant for heavy-duty work and gloved hands all day long. The bottom of the pommel also comes to a dull point as an additional defensive striking surface. Overall, this knife is a perfect fit for a man like Bond, who likes minimal styling and military pieces as he comes from that world himself.

Read more about Bond and M’s Gerber “switchblade” knives at James Bond Lifestyle.

How to Get the Look

Daniel Craig filming Spectre (2015), sourced from thunderballs.org.

Depending on the context, the all-dark layers may be a little sleek for most people, but Daniel Craig’s outfit for these climactic action scenes in Spectre pay tribute to the character’s heritage as well as his own King of Cool-inspired costume approach, all while balancing practicality with the luxury that has come to be associated with the 007 franchise.

• Dark navy goat suede racer-style jacket with short standing collar, two-way zipper, vertical-entry hand pockets, and zip-back sleeves
  • John Varvatos “Racer Jacket”
• Dark charcoal merino wool/silk mockneck jumper with set-in sleeves
  • N.Peal “NPG-300 Fine Gauge”
• Gray-on-black micro-ticked synthetic-blend flat front trousers with belt loops, frogmouth-style front pockets, button-through back pockets, and tapered plain-hemmed bottoms
  • Neil Barrett
• Dark brown textured leather belt with gunmetal silver-toned square single-prong buckle
• Brown suede two-eyelet crepe-soled “playboy boots”
  • Sanders & Sanders
• Black socks
• Dark brown leather shoulder holster, for Walther PPK (left-hand draw)
• Omega Seamaster Aqua Terra 150M Master Co-Axial 231.10.42.21.03.003 chronometer with stainless steel 41.5mm case, blue dial with 3:00 date window, and stainless steel three-piece link bracelet

Do Yourself a Favor and…

Check out the movie.

The Quote

You’re a hard man to kill, Blofeld.

The post Bond in Action: Daniel Craig’s Racer Jacket and Mockneck in Spectre appeared first on BAMF Style.

Daniel Craig as James Bond in Skyfall (2012). Adapted from an image sourced at thunderballs.org.

Vitals

Daniel Craig as James Bond, “resurrected” British secret agent

London, Spring 2012

Film: Skyfall
Release Date: November 9, 2012
Director: Sam Mendes
Costume Designer: Jany Temime

Background

Having been assumed dead after taking friendly fire in the field, James Bond returns from self-imposed exile. However, before he can go from “resurrection” to active duty, the British Secret Service needs to make sure their most famous secret agent can still shoot straight.

Following the attack on their Vauxhall Cross headquarters, SIS has set up temporary shop in the concrete bowels of the Old Vic tunnels under London, and it’s here that Bond runs through a variety of exercises from treadmills to crash drills. The service’s ever-affable chief of staff, Bill Tanner (Rory Kinnear), attempts to save time by bringing 007 up to speed on his new assignment, but months on a Greek beach fueled by Heineken and vintage Macallan haven’t made it easy for Mr. Bond to catch his breath.

Tanner: We can always do this later.
Bond: You know what? Let’s.

Although Daniel Craig’s 007 was often referred to by his Royal Navy rank, Commander Bond never actually appeared in uniform on film during Craig’s era. In fact, the closest we saw to Craig’s James Bond in any sort of uniform—aside from when the actor himself received his honorary commission in 2021—was when he was put to these tests in Skyfall, resurrected and ready to be retrained by his superiors… and dressed the part in an SIS-marked track jacket and training shirt.

SIS Training Gear recognized the opportunity for Bond fans to borrow from our favorite secret agent’s style, not with a tailored suit or trim navy polo but through an increasingly growing selection of activewear that started with just a pair of T-shirts and joggers, designed to resemble Craig’s screen-worn apparel. Since then, the collection has grown to a wide and exciting lineup of a range of casual styles that reference Bond films across the franchise’s 60 years.

Formally known as SIS (Secret Intelligence Service) or—more colloquially—MI6 (Military Intelligence, Section 6), the United Kingdom’s foreign intelligence division was formed on July 4, 1909, as the foreign section of what was then known as the Secret Service Bureau. Following Ian Fleming’s work with SIS during World War II, the author enlisted his famous literary creation into the service of his former employer, establishing James Bond as arguably the most notable fictional SIS agent of all time.

What’d He Wear?

As with all of 007’s clothing, a breakdown of the outfit can be read in perfect detail as written by Matt Spaiser at Bond Suits. You can also learn more about this and see photos of the screen-worn pieces at James Bond Lifestyle. Almost the entire outfit—jacket, pants, shirt, and shoes—were auctioned by Prop Store in December 2020, selling for £18,750… just about £4,000 less than his influential midnight blue tuxedo worn several scenes later.

Craig’s long-sleeved navy-blue “muscle shirt” isn’t your average T-shirt, instead made from a tight performance-oriented cloth finely waffle-knit to cling to his athletic frame. The shirt’s narrow crew-neck is ribbed, likely echoed on the cuffs of the sleeves that he pushes up his forearms. The set-in sleeves are detailed with exposed stitching around the armholes. The left breast is decorated with the silver-embroidered SIS logo, a variation of the UK’s Royal Coat of Arms with a crowned English lion and a unicorn (representing Scotland) flanking a royal crown above the letters “SIS”.

When the SIS Training Gear collection was being developed, the founder started with a version of the long-sleeved shirt that Craig had worn on screen which remains the brand’s best-selling item.

Bond takes a break from retraining himself for active duty.

SIS evidently co-opted the royal blue track jacket from the British Army’s Physical Training Instructor (PTI) kit, claiming it for their own service by again embroidering their crest in silver thread over the left breast. According to James Bond Lifestyle and the Prop Store auction, the screen-worn jacket was made by German athleisure giant PUMA, though the branding on the left sleeve is a dark blue that blends against the rest of the jacket.

With a tightly woven cotton-blend shell and fleece lining, the track jacket has a round, narrowly banded crew-neck that echoes the base layer shirt beneath it. Both the front zipper extending from the hem to neck and the horizontal set-in pocket over the left breast zip closed with a blue-painted PUMA-branded pull tab. The set-in sleeves have elasticized cuffs.

Bond approaches the perforated target, empty PPK in hand.

Bond’s blue track pants match the jacket, albeit without SIS adding their crest anywhere visible. (SIS Training Gear explained that there was such demand for logos on their repro pants that the company forewent screen accurate in order to satisfy the wishes of customers by creating the Training Logo Joggers.)

These pants have a clean-presenting yet elasticized waistband that hold them up without a visible drawcord. Each side has a vertical zippered pocket, and the bottoms are elasticized like “joggers” with a foot-long zipper up the outside of each leg. In his Bond Suits writeup, Matt Spaiser notes the rib sewn down the center of each leg, noting that the resulting crease provides “a more military-like look” appropriate for Commander Bond… even if he’s a Royal Navy officer dressed in the garb of a different branch.

Did Bond’s discomfort with the closely observed, stiff-armed shooting remind anyone else of The Sundance Kid asking Percy Garris “…can I move?”

Bond’s Adidas Gazelle 2 sneakers are the first we see of his training apparel, worn with the functional—if uncool—white athletic crew socks, likely made from a breathable cotton blend. Adidas took inspiration from soccer shoes to design the Gazelle, which was introduced in 1968 and remains one of the most recognized sneakers more than a half-century later.

Bond’s Gazelle uppers are a rich dark blue nubuck that Adidas calls “dark indigo”, configured with a T-toe and detailed with the brand’s signature triple leather stripes on each side, tonally colored in a paler shade that Adidas calls “Argentina blue”. James Bond Lifestyle observed that commercial Gazelle 2 sneakers would have Argentina blue-colored heels as well, though these were likely blackened for production to better conceal the conspicuous “Trefoil” logo. (Evidently, Adidas didn’t have the sweet terms of Heineken’s product placement deal.)

Bond’s Gazelles are laced with flat dark blue woven cotton laces through seven sets of eyelets, and the outsoles are white rubber.

Don’t you step on Bond’s blue suede shoes!

While the Gazelle 2 has been discontinued as of February 2022, Adidas has reissued an earlier version in a “collegiate navy”-and-white colorway, available via Adidas and Amazon.

It’s perhaps worth noting that this is one of the few scenes across Craig’s tenure where Bond does not wear a wristwatch, let alone any of the attractive Omega watches he’s contractually obligated to sport on screen.

My SIS Training Gear Shirt

After learning about SIS Training Gear's offerings, I picked up a Basic Training T-shirt in the Bond-approved navy color. I chose this particular short-sleeved T-shirt in part because I wasn't confident how a muscle-fit shirt would look on my, uh, lumpier-than-Daniel-Craig frame, as well as being drawn to the fact that the SIS logo was embroidered on.

Made from 100% cotton, the tee is comfortable and flattering (if I may say so myself) and adds a subtle but meaningful incorporation of one of my favorite screen characters into my wardrobe without being either too esoteric or too obvious. I'll certainly be buying more from SIS Training Gear in the future, whether it's building up my training gear with jacket and joggers or browsing the "Spy Collection" for shirts, caps, and mugs that add a twist of 007 to my life.

My T-shirt from SIS Training Gear, modeled in my basement to try to replicate the Old Vic Tunnels as seen during Bond's training montage in Skyfall. (The watch is an inexpensive but rather reliable Casio MDV106-1A diver on a black resin strap.)

The Gun

Our hero hasn’t yet been assigned his unique palm-reading PPK/S, so Bond shows off his skill—or perhaps his rustiness—with a trusty older-model Walther PPK, with a blued steel frame and presumably chambered for the smaller .32 ACP round.

Bond takes aim with his Walther PPK.

The first shot hits about a foot too far to the left for Bond’s intended headshot. He makes a second attempt, now taking more time to steady his aim rather than firing from a draw, but he still hits low, now a few inches to the right of his target’s neck. With a frustrated look behind him at the recorder taping the session, he grits his teeth and charges the target at a steady pace, firing as he does and coming closer to emptying the PPK’s remaining seven rounds. (The fact that Bond’s PPK is shown to be loaded with nine rounds suggests a potential continuity error as the PPK can only be loaded with a total of eight rounds—seven in the magazine, one in the chamber—and even one less if it’s .380 ACP model.)

The results aren’t perfect but it shows that, however he needs to do it, 007 can still get the job done.

How to Get the Look

Daniel Craig as James Bond in Skyfall (2012)

Thanks to SIS Training Gear, you can easily build a look to work out like England’s top super-spy… or just accent your wardrobe with a few nods to 007 without needing to break the bank on too many tailored suits.

• Navy-blue waffle-knit crew-neck long-sleeve “performance” T-shirt with exposed armhole stitching
  • Long Sleeve Training Shirt from SIS Training Gear
• Royal-blue cotton-blend zip-up crew-neck track jacket with zippered-breast-pocket and set-in-sleeves with elasticized cuffs
  • Lightweight Jacket from SIS Training Gear
• Royal-blue cotton-blend “jogger”-style track pants with zip-up side pockets and zip-up elasticized bottoms
  • Training Logo Joggers from SIS Training Gear
• Dark-blue nubuck leather Adidas Gazelle 2 sneakers with triple light-blue leather side stripes, white rubber outsoles, and dark-blue laces
• White cotton-blend athletic crew socks

Do Yourself a Favor and…

Check out the movie and be sure to browse SIS Training Gear!

The Quote

After the day proves to be less than promising, Bond arrives at his final evaluation, this time a mental exam that begins with a tweedy psychologist asking for word associations. Naturally, the laconic Bond is dismissive but plays along until he’s prompted with… “Skyfall.” Receiving no response to the dig at the skeletons in Bond’s closet—or priest hole, more accurately—the doctor asks again, to which Bond replies before walking out of the room:

Done.

The post Skyfall: James Bond’s SIS Training Gear appeared first on BAMF Style.

Daniel Craig as James Bond, armed with a Walther PPK in No Time to Die (2021)

Vitals

Daniel Craig as James Bond, retired British secret agent

Sea of Japan, Spring 2020

Film: No Time to Die
Release Date: September 30, 2021
Director: Cary Joji Fukunaga
Costume Designer: Suttirat Anne Larlarb

WARNING! Spoilers ahead!

Background

What happens to the hero after he rides off into the sunset?

Aside from the occasional epilogue featuring James Bond and his lady du jour, we hadn’t really received much of an answer until No Time to Die, Daniel Craig’s fifth and final movie as the stylish super-spy. On the 00-7th of March—which is Craig’s birth month, as the actor turned 54 five days ago—let’s revisit how his tenure ended after the martinis stopped being shaken.

Nominated for three Academy Awards and five BAFTAs, No Time to Die brought the Craig era to a daring, explosive climax that I felt was a fittingly poignant conclusion to the specific arc of his characterization of agent 007, paying tribute to its literary and cinematic forebears, specifically On Her Majesty’s Secret Service. The finale finds Bond in full commando mode, and thus I enlisted the help of my friend Caleb who runs the excellent Commando Bond Instagram and blog pages and channeled his inner Geoffrey Boothroyd (IYKYK) to help me navigate the world of the various firearms that equip the final mission undertaken by Craig’s Bond.

Just as Daniel Craig fired a Walther PPK at the screen to kick off Casino Royale with a new spin on the franchise’s traditional “gunbarrel sequence”, so does he conclude it with a similar in-narrative gunbarrel during the battle at a secret island lair.

“James Bond… history of violence, license to kill,” summarizes Lyutsifer Safin (Remi Malek), the dangerous terrorist established as Bond’s mortal adversary. “Vendetta with Ernst Blofeld, in love with Madeleine Swann. I could be speaking to my own reflection.”

While a few previous Bonds had hinted at some continuity between adventures, Daniel Craig’s five movies were the first to feel more serialized as the events connected—with varying degrees of success—that led to the events of No Time to Die. Having found and lost love with both the late Vesper Lynd (Eva Green) and now Madeleine Swann (Léa Seydoux), whom he believes betrayed him, Bond hangs up his shoulder holster to retire from the service to live a life of pleasant solitude in Jamaica, perhaps modeled after the example set by his literary mastermind, Ian Fleming.

Of course, two hours of watching Bond fishing in a tattered T-shirt would hardly thrill, so the former agent is drawn back into service by his old CIA pal Felix Leiter (Jeffrey Wright), who connects him with the charming rookie agent Paloma (Ana de Armas) in the hopes of retrieving the rogue scientist Dr. Obruchev (David Dencik). One marvelously entertaining sequence in Cuba and one tragic death later, Obruchev has escaped and Madeleine has been coerced by Safin to engineer the death of the imprisoned Ernst Stavro Blofeld (Christoph Waltz). Realizing that he was never betrayed by Madeleine, Bond dashes off to Norway to find her living with a five-year-old daughter, Mathilde (Lisa-Dorah Sonnet), who’s curiously the same age as the amount of time that’s passed since he last saw Madeleine… give or take nine months.

Following a morning making breakfast for Madeleine, Mathilde, and her omnipresent stuffy Dou-Dou, Bond’s fleeting minutes of domestic bliss are interrupted by the arrival of SPECTRE killer Logan Ash (Billy Magnussen) and his hard-driving henchmen, accompanied by their boss Safin, who kidnaps Madeleine and Mathilde even after Bond mows down Ash and the rest. Despite his retired status, Bond gains the assistance of M (Ralph Fiennes), Q (Ben Whishaw), Miss Moneypenny (Naomie Harris), and the new 007—Nomi (Lashana Lynch)—who offers to accompany him on his mission after requesting that M redesignate Bond as 007.

Bond and Nomi take flight in Q’s “stealthy bird” glider, charging toward the explosive climax at Poison Garden Island, a mid-century complex that Safin commandeered from Blofeld located on a secret island in an area Q identifies as “disputed waters between Japan and Russia,” setting the stage for a final act that echoes Ian Fleming’s ending to the novel You Only Live Twice. (Rather than the contested area mentioned, the island seen on screen was actually among the Faroe Islands in the North Atlantic.)

Dr. Obruchev’s warning that the two are embarking on a suicide mission grows increasingly prescient when Bond is called out to Safin, prompting him to hand Nomi the controller to the explosives they planted and ordering: “If I don’t come back, blow it all to shit.”

After saving his family—a word he uncomfortably mouths to himself after introducing Madeleine and Mathilde to Nomi—Bond observes that the entire island is a manufacturing plant for the deadly nanobots powering Safin’s bioweapon against the world, and he orders that the Royal Navy deliver an immediate missile strike to destroy it… even if he doesn’t have the time to leave first. Despite M’s protestations regarding a “diplomatically complex” situation growing, Bond sticks to his virtuous goals: “if we don’t do this, there’ll be nothing left to save.”

“I have to finish this… for us,” Bond tells Madeleine with a kiss as he loads her into a boat with Mathilde and Nomi to make a safe getaway. “I’ll just be a minute.”

What’d He Wear?

For this final act, Bond dresses in a tactical outfit that feels already established as an iconic outfit of the Craig era, the combined result of its ubiquity in the film’s marketing, its significance within the movie itself, and its overall “cool factor”. The buzz around No Time to Die meant plenty of advance coverage and speculation about the outfits for months—even years—before they were finally actually seen on screen in context, with this being a particularly anticipated costume.

As usual, Bond Suits is the first place to read expert analysis of 007’s attire, with plenty of other excellent sources like Iconic Alternatives, James Bond Lifestyle, From Tailors With Love, and The Bond Experience continuing to provide in-depth insights into the clothing, accessories, and gadgets of Bond’s world and wardrobe.

In fact, the look inspired my friend Caleb to combine his passions for firearms and Bond into @CommandoBond, his informative Instagram account—and now blog!—that expertly and illustratively details the crossroads of Bond’s firearms and fashion sense.

The Commando Sweater

When Bond and Nomi board the RAF plane where a pajama-clad and gadget-laden Q awaits, Bond is still wearing the white henley he’d worn in Norway under his corduroy duster, but he’s supplemented it with the additional of tactical clothing and gear presumably provided by MI6 to support his combat mission.

Particularly given Commander Bond’s naval background, the commando sweater and cargo pants look like they could indeed be government or military issue, but their actual provenance was a close collaboration between costume designer Suttirat Anne Larlarb and London-based knitwear outfitter N.Peal to develop a look specifically for Daniel Craig to wear in No Time to Die, following the sweaters they provided for Craig to wear in Skyfall and Spectre.

Dressed in navy blue combat gear with their issued watches and weaponry (thanks to Q, lurking behind them), Nomi and Bond prepare to descend on Safin’s secret island.

Bond’s sweater echoes the “wooly pully” jumpers that originated with the British Army during World War II, eventually adopted by other branches and nations around the world. In Peter Brooker and Matt Spaiser’s From Tailors with Love, N.Peal creative director Adam Holdsworth recalls that the impetus was when Larlarb “had seen a vintage military commando sweater” and worked with N.Peal to individualize it into something “useful that… harked back to his military past, but it had to be timeless and of the moment.”

“I wanted to refer back to his naval background, but with a twist,” Craig explained in an exclusive interview with David Zaritsky of The Bond Experience. “It had to look like a uniform that he’d sort of gathered over the years. We used a couple of references of Special Forces, but older special forces—like from the ’50s—as opposed to the guys now who are suited up with the flak jackets… I wanted a silhouette that said something a bit more… this is the gear he keeps at home, and when it’s time to go to business he gets it out of the wardrobe and that’s what he sticks on.”

I’ve long been a proponent of commando sweaters, having picked up a secondhand USMC-issued crew-neck “woolly pully” when I was in high school that still fits me 15 years later, a testament to the quality, strength, and structure of the fabric… and not necessarily to my abysmal diet or exercise routine! My sweater’s tag includes the designation “sweater, man’s, knitted wool olive green, U.S. Marine Corps, shade 2247” and wears comfortably over T-shirts or collared shirts, as it’s the wool is a bit too itchy—and time-consuming to effectively wash—for me to wear it over bare skin. (Click here to see your humble author wearing said USMC sweater in a decidedly more collegiate context, circa December 2009.)

Craig’s screen-worn sweater was designed to be both combat-ready and comfortable, made from a blend of 90% superfine Merino wool and 10% cashmere, the latter apropos N.Peal’s specialty. In his Bond Suits post about the outfit, Matt Spaiser explains that the fabric blend was a “good choice because merino wool makes this tougher than a sweater that has a higher amount of cashmere, but the 10% cashmere can still be felt in the hand.”

In addition to the more luxurious fabric, the sweater departs from modern mil-spec gear with its wide boat-neck that N.Peal describes as “consistent with maritime clothing designed to reflect Bond’s close association with the Royal Navy.” A matching drawstring “shock cord” has been threaded through the collar, with the two ends hanging down from the front of the sweater.

The couple that wears N.Peal knitwear together stays together… at least until he loads her and their daughter into a boat to aid their escape from a doomed island that’s been secretly producing nanobots for a deranged megalomaniac to wage biochemical war against the world.

Commando sweaters are often associated with original olive green fabric—particularly appropriate for ground forces—though several branches like the Royal Navy issue them in navy blue, an appropriate choice for No Time to Die given the function (a former naval commander’s mission at sea) and the form (flattering Daniel Craig’s blue eyes). The ribbed body of the sweater also flatters Craig’s physique, highlighting that—even at five years retired and on the other side at 50—Bond is still in fighting shape. “The actual ribbing of the sweater had to have a specific level of definition and the shape of it had to make him look good,” Holdsworth explained in an interview for From Tailors with Love.

One of the key characteristics of commando-style sweaters are the canvas patches sewn over shoulders and elbows, both to prevent these high-tension areas from wearing out while also preventing friction burns from straps like those on Bond’s S.O.Tech gear bag or his Mk 18 Mod 0 carbine. “They wanted it in a quality cotton twill; just finding those things are incredibly difficult,” Holdsworth explained of the process to source the canvas taping for these patches. “[We found] a real cotton twill … and then custom dyed it to the shade they wanted.” Ultimately, Holdsworth recalled that approximately thirty of these “figure-hugging” jumpers were made for the production.

Note the unique shape of Bond’s wide boat-neck opening (with the pointed sides overlapping the tops of his dark suspenders under the sweater), the double ends of the drawcord hanging from the neck, and the canvas patches over the shoulders and elbows.

You can purchase the N.Peal “007 Ribbed Army Sweater” from FarFetch and N.Peal. (Unlike Bond, you probably won’t need 30 of them.)

Read more about the N.Peal sweater at From Tailors With Love, Iconic Alternatives, and James Bond Lifestyle.

The Henley Shirt

After the first part of his mission on Safin’s island, Bond pulls of his commando sweater and drapes it around Mathilde, telling her “it’s going to get very cold out, so I want you to have this,” also giving his young daughter a memento of the father she never got to know for more than a day.

The gesture reveals that Bond’s base layer is the same eggshell-white long-sleeved henley shirt that he had worn under his corduroy duster in Norway. Made from a soft, slubbed jersey-knit cotton, this henley from American fashion label Rag & Bone has a reinforced woven placket with three recessed metal buttons, each intentionally designed for an aged effect with the white paint worn away on the edges.

In this case, Bond’s “wear-and-tear in the field” results in significant wear-and-tear to his clothing, as seen by the rip over the left shoulder on his off-white henley shirt.

You can purchase the Rag & Bone henley from Nordstrom.

Read more about the Rag & Bone henley at From Tailors With Love and James Bond Lifestyle.

The Suspenders

Bond holds up his tactical trousers with a set of wide dark gray suspenders (braces), made by N. Peal in a blended fabric of 97% cotton and 3% elastane, the latter adding enough stretch to adapt to his significant level of activity on the island while also expanding enough to secure the recovered Dou-Dou.

The suspenders that N. Peal markets as “007 Braces” have dark brass hardware, including the front and back adjusters and waistband clips. Bond reinforces their connection to his trousers with short tan leather straps hooked on the lower front adjusters, presumably buttoned along the inside of his trouser waistband. (At From Tailors With Love, Pete Brooker shares that he learned the braces were actually sewn onto the trousers to keep them in place during the rigors of the action-heavy sequence.)

Bond tests the limits of his suspenders’ strength during heavy action on Poison Garden island.

You can purchase the N.Peal “007 Braces” from FarFetch and N.Peal.

Read more about the suspenders at James Bond Lifestyle.

The Tactical Trousers

As with the sweater, costume designer Suttirat Anne Larlarb collaborated with N.Peal to develop Bond’s combat trousers, marking a departure from the brand’s usual focus on knitwear and cashmere. With their abundance of tabs, zips, snaps, and straps, these tactical pants may look out of place in any other situation, though they’re perfectly suited for Bond’s mission here and non-00s may benefit from wearing them for rugged outdoor pursuits like camping or hiking.

Made of dark gray cotton, these flat front trousers have eight long, heavy-duty belt loops that button closed just under the belt line, with three evenly spaced on each side of the front and two closely spaced in the back. Despite these, Bond foregoes a belt in favor of the aforementioned suspenders, which are reinforced by an integral tan strap that loops from inside the waistband on each side of the front, matching the short tan tab that passes through a gunmetal buckle rigged just behind the forward-most belt loop on each side of the front. The trousers have a button-up fly with two small buttons to close at the top and a two-button squared waistband tab.

Larlarb explained to N.Peal that the trousers “would need to have a tactical functionality, with pockets dimensioned and positioned for specific props,” hence the abundance of storage. Each side pocket closes with a zipper up a set-in vertical opening. A gusseted cargo pocket over the left thigh closes with a double-snap flap… concealing another intricate system of snapped straps—a gray horizontal cotton strap over a brown vertical leather tab—that cover three brown leather loops resembling those used for bullet cartridges. Farther down the right leg, the trousers boast what appears to be a knife sheathing system with two dark gray velcro straps sewn onto the outside of the right calf, positioned just below a snap-closing flap with a slot inset on the flap. The seat lacks pockets, but has a curved seam echoing classic cavalry trousers and those favored by equestrians.

Both trouser legs are finished at the bottom with a gunmetal zipper that zips up to open and down to close, tightening the fit over the legs with a double-snap closure to secure the hems.

You can purchase the N.Peal “007 Combat Trousers” from FarFetch and N.Peal.

Read more about the trousers at From Tailors With Love, James Bond Lifestyle, and N.Peal.

Production photo of Bond, stripped down to his shirt sleeves and suspenders as he opens the blast doors to allow the Royal Navy’s missiles to destroy the island.

Bond wears a wide, heavy-duty black nylon belt over his hips, with CNC-machined black anodized aerospace aluminum quick-release buckles that James Bond Lifestyle identified as the “Epoch” model made by the recently formed American company Carbon Tactics.

The belt is too wide for his trouser loops, but he wears it more like a utility belt, with an additional black leather pouch on the left hip and a drop-leg tactical holster for his MI6-issued SIG-Sauer P226 pistol. Luckily for Mr. Bond, several of Safin’s henchmen carry the P226 as well, so he’s able to holster their commandeered pistols after losing his own.

I’ve seen the all-black polyester UTG Extreme Ops 188 identified as the holster that Bond wears on his right thigh in No Time to Die, albeit with the buckles on the double black-and-gray striped straps replaced with the Carbon Tactics “Epoch” instead. (Though unavailable as of March 2022, this holster—and many like it—can often be found at an affordable price on Amazon.)

Luckily, plenty of Bond’s gear is water-resistant… but is it DNA-coded nanobot-resistant?

Everything Else

Appropriate for the combat-ready nature of Bond’s mission, Portland, Oregon-based bootmaker Danner redesigned their sturdy 8″ Tanicus duty boots specifically for Craig to wear in No Time to Die, marketed to the public as the Danner 007 Tanicus and “built on the same platform we designed for demanding military use.”

The all-black uppers are constructed of rough-out full-grain sueded leather with their durable 1000 Denier nylon Cordura® for additional protection, extending up the eight-inch shafts. The boots lace up through five sets of eyelets over the instep, then four sets of speed hooks up the shaft, with a stretch “lace garage” pocket at the top of the tongue to keep the loose lace ends out of the wearer’s way. The custom Vibram® outsoles have pentagonal lugs.

The 007 Tanicus boots are almost identical in design to Danner’s standard model, albeit with a moisture-wicking mesh lining (rather than the “Danner Dry” waterproof lining) that contributes to the 007 Tanicus’ relatively reduced weight of 39 oz. per pair while offering enhanced breathability, aided by two perforated grommets on the inner side of each boot.

Read more about the sold-out boots at Danner, the 007 Store, and James Bond Lifestyle.

Bond’s Danner boots are perfectly suitable for rescuing Dou-Dou.

When Bond and Nomi take off in the glider, he pulls on a pair of Vuarnet Edge 1613 sunglasses that are also evidently an off-screen favorite of Daniel Craig. Bond had debuted Vuarnet sunglasses with the unique Glacier model for his skiing scenes in Spectre, followed by the more conventionally framed Legend 06 model seen earlier in No Time to Die when we catch up with the retired Bond in Jamaica.

James Bond Lifestyle reports that the specific screen-worn model is the VL1613 0002 1622, indicating dark gunmetal frames with gray polarized lenses, overlaid with black acetate rims. The quasi-futuristic approach to classic aviator frames befits their use in a scene of Bond taking flight, particularly in more experimental technology like Q’s folding-wing glider.

You can purchase Vuarnet Edge 1613 sunglasses from Amazon, Backcountry, and Vuarnet.

Read more about these sunglasses at From Tailors with Love and James Bond Lifestyle.

Back in the saddle again…

Given Omega’s association with Bond now lasting over a quarter of a century, considerable thought went into co-designing the timepiece that would dress Bond’s wrist. “When working with Omega, we decided that a lightweight watch would be key for a military man like 007,” Daniel Craig explained in Omega’s official announcement. “I also suggested some vintage touches and color to give the watch a unique edge.”

The resulting product is the Omega Seamaster Diver 300M Co-Axial Master Chronometer, worn on both a NATO strap (210.92.42.20.01.001) and metal “shark mesh” or “Milanese” bracelet (210.90.42.20.01.001). Both the 42mm case and the mesh bracelet were made from lightweight yet durable Grade 2 Titanium that also offers a tactical advantage given its resistance to corrosion and to reflecting light.

Q provides an additional tactical advantage to the watch when Bond returns to MI6’s service, gadget-izing the Seamaster to contain “a limited-radius electromagnetic pulse” designed to “short any circuit in a hard-wired network if you can get close enough.”

Bond: And how strong is it?
Q: It’s, uh, fairly strong.
Bond: “Fairly strong”? What’s that mean?!

Bond does get the opportunity to show Primo the Omega, subsequently blowing the henchman’s mind. One wonders if Primo had the opportunity to appreciate the beauty of the “tropical brown” aluminum used for the unidirectional rotating bezel and the dial, offering yet another weight-saving feature in addition to being an attractive alternative to the usual black and blue dials of Bond’s divers. The hours are indicated by luminous non-numeric markers, with a “broad arrow” just above the 6:00 marker that James Bond Lifestyle reports was “used by British Armed Forces and visible on some vintage watches issued and owned by the British Ministry of Defense (especially the W.W.W. watches from the Second World War).”

The watch is powered by Omega’s self-winding Co-Axial Master Chronometer Calibre 8806 movement with a power reserve of 55 hours and resistant to magnetic fields reaching 15,000 gauss. In addition to the screw-in crown, the Seamaster has a helium escape valve extending from the side at the 10:00 position.

You can purchase the No Time to Die Omega from Amazon and Omega.

Read more about this watch at James Bond Lifestyle and check out The Bond Experience‘s video review.

Tactically geared in his commando sweater, state-of-the-art Omega, and combat gloves, Bond approaches his latest enemy.

Bond also wisely wears a pair of black lightweight tactical gloves, specifically designed to allow for air circulation and with special inserts that allow the wearer to operate touch-screen devices using their index finger and thumb. According to James Bond Lifestyle, these are the relatively inexpensive Mil-Tec gloves, made from a fast-drying blend of 70% nylon and 30% elastane over the backs and 60% polyamide and 40% polyurethane on the palms. As they were designed for a tactical purpose rather than warmth, they are ventilated through the palms and fingers and extend only to the wrist, where a black hook-and-loop closure can adjust the fit.

You can purchase Mil-Tec gloves from Amazon.

Read more about the Mil-Tec gloves at James Bond Lifestyle.

The Guns

MI6 outfits Bond for substantial combat on Safin’s island with an Mk 18 Mod 0 carbine, rigged with a suppressor and optics, with a carry strap to be worn over his shoulder—making the case for the commando sweater’s reinforced shoulder patches.

The Mk 18 Mod 0 was developed by the U.S. Navy as a close-quarters battle receiver (CQBR) variant of the M4A1 Carbine, which itself was a shortened variant of the M16A2 selective-fire assault rifle. The modularity of the M16 platform allowed for relatively easy replacements of its long barrel with a system that blends the portability of a submachine gun with an intermediate cartridge, in this case combining a 10.3-inch barrel with the M16’s standard 5.56x45mm NATO ammunition.

For more context into Bond’s Mk 18 Mod 0, I turned to Caleb from @CommandoBond, who provided the following insights to be published here:

Bond utilizes a single point sling, connected at the base of the receiver, a holographic sight which appears to be an airsoft replica of an EoTech 512, offset iron sights (which, for some reason, are both on his quad rail, severely limiting his sight radius), a fixed A2 front sight post, and an incredibly long suppressor. While it certainly checks all the boxes for “tacti-cool” points, this setup does miss the mark a bit in my book. Offset irons are really meant to be a backup sight system for someone running a magnified optic, like a 1-6 scope or a Trijicon ACOG. Bond’s holographic sight has no magnification, meaning that he could just as easily run a fixed or folding rear sight behind the optic to accomplish the goal of having a back-up sights in the event of the optics failure. What also makes the case for a rear sight versus an offset pair is the fixed front sight, which is rendered more or less moot without it. In any case, its great to see Bond running a carbine.

One other thing that is really great—and in my opinion makes up for the carbine’s clunky setup—is Bond’s linked 30-round magazines. Daniel Craig was quoted saying that he really didn’t want to go all tactical with this look; he wanted something that allowed Bond to be functional without a flak jacket. His linked magazines allow him to carry additional ammunition without wearing a full kit. I would also hazard a guess that additional magazines were stored in his sling bag. But even if that isn’t the case, once things go crazy, we see Bond recovering magazines off of dead henchmen, which honestly made me really happy. Typically we get the usual “Hollywood unlimited capacity magazine” treatment. Not here. While his magazines seem to be depicted to hold more than 30 rounds, we at least get to see Bond realistically replenishing his limited stock on screen, and that is a major victory for me.

Having recovered his Mk 18 Mod 0 after Safin ordered him to drop it on the floor, Bond fights his way out of the lair to lead Nomi and his family to relative safety. The addition of a suppressor makes the weapon longer than its relatively compact 10″ barrel would suggest, but that just illustrates how much unwieldier a fuller-length carbine or rifle would be when affixed with a suppressor in the same scenario.

After very visibly disarming himself of his Mk 18 Mod 0 carbine and his holstered sidearm, Bond appears to be totally weakening to Safin’s domineering tactics… only for his “apologetic” crouch to be a ruse that allows Bond to better access his Walther PPK, which he swiftly produces to quickly fire three expertly placed rounds that take out Safin’s three guards in the room, though he isn’t fast enough to take out Safin, who absconds through a trapdoor with Mathilde.

German firearms manufacturer Walther developed the PPK in the early 1930s as a more compact variation of their PP (Polizeipistole), and the small blowback pistol grew to international fame as the favored sidearm of Ian Fleming’s fictional secret agent James Bond, first in the novels followed by the movies as Sean Connery, George Lazenby, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, and Pierce Brosnan all holstered the .32-caliber PPK.

Daniel Craig fleetingly used a Walther PPK during the pre-credits sequence of his first Bond movie, Casino Royale, before the larger and more modern Walther P99 was established as his weapon of choice in the movie. By the following film, Quantum of Solace, Craig’s Bond had reverted to the smaller and more iconic PPK, which became his go-to carry piece for the rest of his tenure.

Caleb from @CommandoBond put considerable research into identifying the blued PPK carried by Daniel Craig in No Time to Die, ultimately determining that his handgun was actually a Walther PPK made under license by American manufacturer Smith & Wesson, made clear by the extended beavertail and dovetail sight. (This came as delightful news for me, as my PPK is also a post-recall Smith & Wesson-produced model—albeit a stainless steel .380.)

“Bond carries the pistol at the appendix inside the waistband (AIWB) position,” Caleb clarified to me. “This puts the pistol just to the right of his center-mass, giving Bond solid access to the firearm in nearly any position, including while bent double in Safin’s lair. With Bond’s full kit in mind, this is a perfect place to conceal a backup pistol. His drop leg holster and S.O. Tech Sling bag put a 3 o’clock or 4 o’clock position essentially out of commission, and his fitted trousers and high boots do the same for ankle carry. AIWB is currently one of the most popular carry positions due to its ease of concealment for handguns of any size; look to how Bond casually conceals his Browning Hi-Power in Jamaica. With an untucked cover garment, whether it’s a Tommy Bahama silk shirt or a commando sweater, one’s firearm easily disappears in AIWB carry and still has sub-second accessibility.”

Having cleared the room of threats, Bond stands with his PPK ready as he’s reunited with Madeleine.

The SIG-Sauer P226 emerged as one of Bond’s preferred pistols when facing heavier combat than his smaller-caliber, lower-capacity Walther PPK could handle. Swiss manufacturer SIG-Sauer designed the P226 to enter the XM9 Service Pistol Trials hosted by the U.S. Army when seeking a replacement for the venerable M1911A1 in the early 1980s. Though it wasn’t selected for that purpose, the P226 made a favorable impression on the firearms world—and would indeed be adopted by U.S. Navy SEALs—and has since spawned a host of offspring in varying sizes, triggers, and ammunition.

The British Army and Royal Air Force are among the many military forces around the world to have widely issued the P226 and P226R (modified with an accessory rail) for use, providing a real-life gateway for the weapon’s entry into the Bond-iverse as an authorized MI6 duty sidearm. We first see Craig’s Bond arm himself with a P226, taken from an MI6 guard in Quantum of Solace before using it through the final sequence, and another appears when he’s giving Madeleine a quick firearms lesson in Spectre.

Speaking of firearms lessons, please enjoy the additional context provided by @CommandoBond below:

In both Spectre and No Time to Die, the variant utilized by Bond is the P226R, which is a Picatinny-railed version of the pistol. It makes a lot of sense that the more modern Bond would have a penchant and familiarity with this handgun, as both the Special Air Service and Special Boat Service—with whom Bond served during his tenure in the Royal Navy—issue the P226. This alloy-framed pistol is hammer-fired, and sports a decocking lever rather than a manual safety. This mechanism also makes the P226 a great companion to the PPK, as both have a double action/single action (DA/SA) capability—the PPK’s manual safety also functions as a decocker—meaning that, for both of Bond’s handguns, the first shot has a longer and heavier trigger pull as an additional safety feature, with proceeding shots being far faster and with a shorter reset. This dual system does take some additional getting used to, and this would certainly be something Bond would train around.

Bond gears up with this P226R while on the RAF plane en route to Safin’s island, suggesting that it’s yet another government-issued pistol, perhaps provided by MI6 or the RAF. He wears it very accessibly—and visibly—in the drop holster strapped to his right thigh. As Safin can see Bond carrying it, he asks him to drop it… but he remains unaware of Bond’s more furtively stored PPK. Once Bond regains the upper hand, he re-holsters the discarded P226 and uses it for some extended combat to follow. After he runs out of ammunition during a stairwell fight, he runs into some luck as many of Safin’s henchmen are armed with P226 pistols, so he can just take and holster theirs as needed.

Bond makes a show of the fact that he’s removing his P226… all with the knowledge that he’s keeping his PPK tucked away and ready for use as needed.

The weapon that ultimately was selected from the XM9 Service Pistol Trials was the Beretta 92F, designated for U.S. military service as the “M9”. As with most military weapons, the M9 has undergone several improvements since it first entered service in the 1980s, including the development of the Beretta M9A3, introduced in 2014.  (In a curious reversal of history, the U.S. military rejected the Beretta M9A3 in favor of the polymer-framed SIG-Sauer P320, but the M9A3 remains for sale on the civilian market.)

The M9A3 expands on the improvements made for the M9A1 variant, including modifications to better accommodate differently sized hands, a threaded barrel, and a full MIL-STD-1913 Picatinny rail with thicker trigger guard for mounting lights, as Safin utilizes with the addition of a fore-light under the barrel. In addition to the classic black, the M9A3 is also available in the tactical finishes of olive drab or “flat dark earth”, as selected for Safin’s Beretta. Black controls like the angled decocker, grip screws, hammer, trigger, and removable front and rear tritium night sights provide a dark contrast against the pistol’s sandy khaki slide, frame, and grips.

After their brawl, Bond picks up Safin’s M9A3 from the water and uses it to execute him: partially to complete his mission but also in revenge for poisoning his blood against his family.

After decades of Bond’s creative disposal of his enemies ranging from compressed-gas inflation to literally pushing them into outer space, he resorts to the tried-and-true method of shooting Safin with his own handgun.

Although it’s certainly not the small .25-caliber pistol that Ian Fleming described in the first half-dozen novels, it’s perhaps suitable that the last on-screen kill of Daniel Craig’s James Bond uses a Beretta, the same Italian manufacturer that Fleming had chosen for the literary 007’s original armament before it would be swapped out for his now-signature Walther PPK.

Read more about the firearms of No Time to Die at IMFDB.

How to Get the Look

As costume designer Suttirat Anne Larlarb summed up to N.Peal: “From the closet of each and every Bond film there always emerges a memorable, informal look that combines a modern take on utility with the character’s effortless and refined style.”

Daniel Craig as James Bond in No Time to Die (2021)

Daniel Craig ends his tenure as James Bond dressed appropriately for his final mission in No Time to Die in a military-inspired “commando sweater”, cargo pants, and boots that—unlike, say, the Harrington jacket, polo, and jeans from Quantum of Solace—are a little too “tacti-cool” for everyday civilian wear, but the pieces themselves can be stylish components of a unique and comfortable casual look.

• Navy-blue ribbed merino wool/cashmere “commando” sweater with drawstring-threaded boatneck and canvas patches over shoulders and elbows
  • N. Peal 007 Ribbed Army Sweater
• Eggshell-white slubbed jersey-knit cotton long-sleeved henley shirt with 3-button placket
  • Rag & Bone Classic Slim Fit Henley
• Dark gray cotton flat front tactical combat trousers with button-down belt loops, zip-up side pockets, snap-flapped gusseted left-thigh pocket, corner-snap right-calf pocket, and zip-up/double-snap hems
  • N. Peal 007 Combat Trousers
• Dark gray cotton/elastane suspenders with brass adjusters and waistband clips
  • N. Peal 007 Braces
• Wide black nylon utility belt with quick-release black anodized aluminum buckles
• Black suede-and-nylon Cordura® 8″ military-style tactical boots with five-eyelet/four-speed hook lacing and Vibram® pentagonal lug outsoles
  • Danner 007 Tanicus
• Omega Seamaster Diver 300M Co-Axial Master Chronometer 210.90.42.20.01.001 titanium 42mm-cased self-winding watch with “tropical brown” aluminum dial and rotating bezel on titanium mesh bracelet
• Vuarnet Edge 1613 sunglasses with gunmetal aviator-style frame, black acetate rims, and gray polarized lenses
• Black synthetic tactical gloves with touch-screen fingers and adjustable cuffs

How About That Ending?

I warned about spoilers above, but—seriously—don’t read on unless you either already know or are ambivalent about the ending to No Time to Die!

With Dou-Dou by his side, Bond faces his fate.

With Daniel Craig’s input, the filmmakers made the controversial choice for James Bond to die at the end of No Time to Die… perhaps rendering the title somewhat moot, as the 163-minute runtime offers plenty of time for the former agent to meet his demise.

Reactions to this decision was mixed from fans, with some feeling betrayed by the death of their seemingly immortal character while others (including me) applauding what felt like appropriate closure for Craig’s more introspective characterization of James Bond.

Some criticism levied at the ending suggested that this was not Ian Fleming’s Bond (and one wonders what these audiences thought of Roger Moore dressed as a clown in Octopussy), though readers may recall that Fleming had brushed with Bond’s mortality on several occasions, first at the conclusion of the novel From Russia with Love which finds 007 staggering into unconsciousness after being stabbed by Rosa Klebb’s poison-tipped shoe… leaving his fate ambiguous. Unlike No Time to Die, which promised viewers that “James Bond will return,” Fleming found himself besieged with frustrated fans who hoped that wasn’t the end of his literary creation. As described by Fergus Fleming in The Man with the Golden Typewriter:

But if he had been hoping to use From Russia with Love to step off the Bond treadmill, he had chosen the wrong moment. Enthusiasm for 007 was gathering apace and, as letters flowed in from a disappointed readership, it seemed that he had little option but to continue.

Following several more literary missions and his life-changing marriage that left him almost instantly widowed, Fleming’s Bond evolves into a more cynical fatalism that intertwined the character’s ending with that of his creator, as Ian Fleming died in August 1964, months after completing the novel You Only Live Twice that—combined with his posthumously completed The Man with the Golden Gun—drove much of No Time to Die‘s pathos and conclusion. The death of Bond’s new wife Tracy in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service has left him a self-destructive shell by You Only Live Twice, in which a simple assignment in Japan devolves into a desperate revenge mission against his mortal enemy Blofeld, now living at a remote castle that cultivates exclusively poisonous vegetation in its “Garden of Death”, an obvious model for the Poison Garden that would enrapture both Bond and his deceased nemesis in its explosive end at the finale of No Time to Die.

And truly, how else would we expect James Bond to die? Such an adrenaline addict would hate to grow old, and it serves his oft-stated raison d’etre that he was not above self-sacrifice, whether in the name of “the things I do for England” or the family he had spawned after leaving the service. Like so many mythic heroes of the old west, it serves the legend of James Bond that he would be determined to die with his proverbial (and literal, thanks to Danner) boots on. This philosophy is summed up when Ralph Fiennes’ M eulogizes the late agent with a passage from Jack London, which had also appeared in the novel You Only Live Twice as Mary Goodnight’s submission for Commander Bond’s obituary:

The proper function of man is to live, not to exist. I shall not waste my days in trying to prolong them. I shall use my time.

I found some interesting parallels between Bond’s on-screen death in No Time to Die and the real-life ending of Sidney Reilly, the Russian-born spy often cited as one of Ian Fleming’s inspirations for the Bond character. After a life shrouded in mystery, often spying on behalf of the British and their allies (and enemies), the middle-aged Reilly had returned to Soviet-controlled Russia, the country that had sentenced him to death in absentia for his role in attempting to overturn the Bolshevik government seven years earlier. Formerly driven by alternating forces of duty and greed, Reilly seemed now strictly ideological in his determination to challenge the Soviets… but his idealism was met with betrayal and capture, and it’s widely reported that he was executed in November 1925, following weeks in captivity. (There are theories that Reilly’s 1925 “death” was actually cover for his defection, but I’ll keep my commentary to the accepted facts.)

Like Bond in No Time to Die, Reilly had aged into his 50s by this point, was no longer on active duty, and appeared more focus on his romantic life (whether his latest wife was his third or fourth remains murky.) Both Bond and Reilly may have had the option to enjoy lives in quiet retirement, but both felt compelled to return to dangerous situations that led to their deaths. In both cases, their deaths were narratively positioned as sacrifices that served a greater good: the real-life Reilly’s capture and execution exposed the GPU’s fake anti-Bolshevik organization, The Trust (as emphasized in the 1983 mini-series Reilly, Ace of Spies), and Bond’s death on Poison Garden island prevented him from endangering his family while also ensuring the island’s destruction.

Some may disagree with my appreciation for how No Time to Die ended Craig’s tenure (which is fine!), but at least all 007 fans can count on the four words across the screen as the credits wrapped:

James Bond Will Return

Do Yourself a Favor and…

Check out the movie.

The Quote

You have all the time in the world.

The post No Time to Die: Daniel Craig’s Commando Bond Gear appeared first on BAMF Style.

Daniel Craig as James Bond in No Time to Die (2021)

Vitals

Daniel Craig as James Bond, retired British secret agent

Jamaica to Cuba, Spring 2020

Film: No Time to Die
Release Date: September 30, 2021
Director: Cary Joji Fukunaga
Costume Designer: Suttirat Anne Larlarb

WARNING! Spoilers ahead!

Background

Happy 00-7th of June! The weather continues warming up as we approach summer in the Northern Hemisphere, and I’m sure I won’t be alone in turning to James Bond for inspiration as I begin rotating summer style staples back to the front of my closet.

To dissect the phrasing of his literary creator, you could say James Bond had lived enough for two lifetimes by the time we find the globetrotting secret agent now retired toward the start of No Time to Die. Approximately five years have passed since he finally left the employ of MI6 and—again, like Ian Fleming—he’s settled into seaside solitude on the shores of Jamaica, the Caribbean island nation where Ian Fleming penned many of his Bond novels and where the film series itself began with most of the action in Dr. No.

“You fell so far off the grid we thought you must be dead,” his old boss M (Ralph Fiennes) would ultimately tell him, and that appears to be just how Bond likes it, isolated in a tropical paradise with little to do but fish, drink, and work through piles of books with adventurous titles like A Sailor’s Tales, The Complete Book of Sea Fishing, Postwar: A History of Europe Since 1945, and Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance.

Returning home from a day of fishing, the erstwhile 007 proves that his spy-dey senses haven’t totally abandoned him as the presence of cigar ash—particularly Delectado cigars, as favored by his old CIA pal Felix Leiter (Jeffrey Wright)—alerts him to a recent intruder. He showers, brushes his teeth, and stows his pistol into his desk before driving his Land Rover into Port Antonio, where he engineers a run-in with Felix and his politically appointed State Department crony Logan Ash (Billy Magnussen), who eagerly describes himself as “a huge fan” of Bond… only to be disparaged as “the Book of Mormon” by his espionage hero.

“It’ll be like old times,” Leiter pitches Bond over drinks on the prospect of reteaming, having specifically selected the retired agent to assist them in finding the missing MI6 scientist Valdo Obruchev (David Dencik). Bond declines the task, choosing to relive his “old times” by going home with Nomi (Lashana Lynch), a mysterious woman he had encountered the club… only to learn that she’s a British agent who threatens him into keeping out of her way.

Nomi: A lot’s moved on since you retired, Commander Bond. Perhaps you didn’t notice?
Bond: No, can’t say I had! In my humble opinion, the world doesn’t change very much.

Evidently, Nomi hadn’t realized that the now-cynical Bond had turned down Leiter’s request and—perhaps hoping to insult him into complacency—she aims to further twist a knife into Bond’s ego by revealing a detail of her relationship with his former employer.

Nomi: By the way, I’m not just any old double-O… I’m 007. You probably thought they’d retire it.
Bond: It’s just a number.

Nomi’s attempt to keep Bond in retirement fails, and indeed may have energized his wish to accept Leiter’s request for a “favor” when he calls the next morning and announces his decision: “Felix, I’m in.” Not a minute is wasted as Bond returns to the helm of his handsome Spirit 46 sailing yacht to traverse the Cayman Trench to meet his contact, the charming young agent Paloma (Ana de Armas), in Santiago de Cuba.

What’d He Wear?

It was April 29, 2019, the day before I was scheduled to leave for a work conference in Toronto. Among the final packing, travel arrangements, and meeting plans, I had received the long-awaited news that filming commenced the day before on the movie we all still knew as “Bond 25″… and that there were already behind-the-scenes photos from the Port Antonio production available online!

Bond fans received a dual treat with the April 2019 paparazzi shots released, not only sharing the first full outfit from No Time to Die but also teasing Jeffrey Wright’s return as Felix Leiter.

Considering that it was Daniel Craig’s approach to Bond’s casual style that drew me into the world of James Bond, I was delighted to see that our first glimpses—albeit unofficial ones—had shown yet another accessible and dressed-down outfit. The instant and intense scrutiny of the army of better-informed Bond style fans than I meant it wasn’t long before the brands were identified. Okay, Tom Ford, Omega, those jibe, but… Sperry? Tommy Bahama? You mean the stuff from my [retired] dad’s closet? (And yes, my closet too.)

As we learned more about the context of No Time to Die, it became clear that we were finally seeing Mr. Bond in retirement and, like so many retirees, he’d abandoned the constraints of dressing for work by favoring the more leisurely style championed by brands like Tommy Bahama. Sure, there may be more luxurious ways to do it, but—in the cinematic closure of a characterization consistent with the more fatalist pathos of Ian Fleming’s James Bond—it feels appropriate see our erstwhile civil servant dressed in more affordable and worn-in garb.

The well-tailored suits and dinner jacket would come later (this is still a Bond movie, after all), but this sequence in Jamaica feels like a 21st century sartorial update for the James Bond whose author had described items like his line up of Sea Island cotton shirts and a houndstooth suit alternately described as “battered” and “yellowing”.

Perhaps most importantly, the style is not only consistent with Bond’s literary roots but also the less-polished 007 that Daniel Craig had portrayed in his debut, Casino Royale. In that first film, his youthful Bond dressed for a night of poker at the Bahamas’ One&Only Ocean Club in an untucked black-presenting button-up shirt rumored to be from the unsophisticated Alfani label found only at Macy’s. Fifteen years later, the aged and retired Bond echoes that look with yet another untucked black shirt, suggesting a personal predisposition for how he favors dressing in the Caribbean.

One of the first officially released images from No Time to Die depicted Bond’s final moments of true retirement before returning to active duty as a favor to a friend. (Photo by Nicola Dove)

Bringing the conversation back to those better-informed Bond style fans, I always recommend Matt Spaiser’s site Bond Suits as the first place to find the best analysis of 007’s attire, with plenty of other excellent sources from experts and enthusiasts including Iconic Alternatives, James Bond Lifestyle, and The Bond Experience continuing to provide in-depth insights into the clothing, accessories, and gadgets of Bond’s world and wardrobe.

The Black Silk Shirt

After cleaning himself in an outdoor shower, Bond pulls on a comfortable black long-sleeved shirt that flatters Daniel Craig’s athletic physique but still offers a breezy fit, helped by two short notched vents on the sides. Like many Bond fans, I had initially registered considerable surprise to learn that Bond’s shirt had been positively identified as the Tommy Bahama “Catalina Twill Shirt”, but the style appears consistent with Bond’s standards, with a solid color in a luxurious fabric rather than some of the louder prints that Tommy Bahama is known for (and which I, neither sophisticated nor a secret agent, feel freer to wear.)

Per its name, the shirt is made from a silk twill, light enough to wear comfortably in a warmer environment, with a subtle white top-stitch along the edges. In his Bond Suits post about the outfit, Matt Spaiser concluded that the shirt had likely been tailored and shortened by the costume department, in turn reducing the number of buttons up the plain front from eight to six. The shirt buttons up to the neck, but Bond keeps the top few buttons undone, and the way that the one-piece collar presents so well when worn open-neck echoes the “convertible collar” originally developed in the mid-20th century for military uniform shirts to be worn effectively both with and without ties.

Bond keeps the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, but knowing the model of shirt he wears informs us that the mitred cuffs are finished with two stacked buttons to close. The shirt also has a squared patch pocket over the left side of the breast that’s just large enough for him to slip his sunglasses after the sun goes down, providing that rare case of a movie character visibly stowing something in a pocket without it magically disappearing when not in use.

Even Bond has the self-awareness to realize that Nomi’s taciturn self-invitation into his bedroom stretches the bounds of believability, asking that she “cut to the chase?” and disparaging her sense of “professional courtesy” after the damage she caused to his Land Rover. Now that he’s home, he’s presumably taken his sunglasses out of his shirt pocket but you can see them there throughout the Port Antonio nightclub scene, including while he’s drinking with Leiter and Logan Ash.

Years after No Time to Die was released, the shirt has evidently remained a favorite of Daniel Craig in real life as the great Instagram account @whatsdanielwearing spotted the actor wearing it while greeting fans after a May 2022 performance of Macbeth in New York City.

Read more about this shirt at James Bond Lifestyle. You can also buy the shirt from Tommy Bahama, though one should heed David Zaritsky’s word of caution in his excellent vlog to consider a size smaller than you usually wear.

The Gray Jeans

Unless you count the bottom half of Roger Moore’s powder-blue leisure suit in Live and Let Die or the denim-like pants briefly seen as Timothy Dalton’s disguise in Licence to Kill, Daniel Craig had been the first James Bond actor to prominently wear jeans as part of a significant outfit on screen, incorporating cream-colored Levi’s and more traditional dark blue denim 7 for All Mankind jeans among his casual fits in the action-packed Quantum of Solace.

Blue denim will always be the traditional cloth associated with jeans, but as they’ve become an established casual staple over the last few decades, other colors and cloths have emerged as alternatives that may regarded as slightly dressier, if for no other reason than lacking the century-old associations with manual labor, gold prospecting, and rodeos.

In No Time to Die, Bond pulls on a pair of light gray cotton jeans with a small black tab on the upper right side seam that has identified them as Tom Ford, the luxury brand that provided much of Daniel Craig’s tailored and casual-wear since Quantum of Solace. Despite the premium connotations of Tom Ford, the jeans follow traditional denim design with five pockets—two curved in the front, an inset right-side coin pocket, and patch back pockets—and nickel rivets, as well as a button-fly. Although the jeans have belt loops, Bond doesn’t wear a belt, in keeping with his more relaxed lifestyle as well as the jeans’ slim fit preventing the likelihood of any wardrobe malfunctions.

After finding unexpected cigar ash, Bond takes the extra precaution of arming himself with his personal Browning Hi-Power that’s never far from his reach, including tucked into his Tom Ford jeans before he stores it in a drawer in his living room. The lower rise of his jeans reveals the top of his black underwear as he pulls his pistol from the front of his waistband.

Read more about these jeans at Iconic Alternatives and James Bond Lifestyle. You can still find similar Tom Ford jeans for sale from retailers like Farfetch, or you could follow the rest of retired Bond’s budget-conscious example by finding light gray Levi’s for a fraction of the price without sacrificing quality.

The Boat Shoes

Boat shoes, or deck shoes, were pioneered in 1935 by New England-based outdoorsman Paul Sperry, who took inspiration from his dog’s paws to develop the now-famous siped sole that gave wearers traction aboard slippery decks. Initially, the Sperry Top-Sider remained limited to those who most needed to maintain their footing at sea, but the popularity slowly crept inland, first among the U.S. Navy who negotiated the rights to manufacture shoes for Naval Academy sailors and among the Ivy League students at universities that encircled Sperry’s headquarters in Waltham, Massachusetts.

“When deck shoes appeared on the cover of Lisa Birnbach’s tongue-in-cheek The Official Preppy Handbook in 1980, it cemented their place in the upper-crust WASP wardrobe as the dressier alternative to sneakers,” wrote Josh Sims in Icons of Men’s Style. Even 007 couldn’t resist the fashionable comfort of deck shoes, which debuted in the franchise when Timothy Dalton sported a pair while jumping across Tangier rooftops in The Living Daylights.

Following that adventure, it took Bond’s retirement to bring deck shoes back into his wardrobe when Daniel Craig was photographed on the set of No Time to Die wearing a weathered pair of Sperry Gold Cup Authentic Original Rivingston boat shoes with full-grain nubuck leather uppers in a shade that Sperry describes as “Titan tan” but I’d be more inclined to describe as light brown. Following traditional deck shoe styling, these have hand-sewn moccasin-stitched toes and a customizable 360° lacing system for each shoe’s single brown rawhide lace entwined through two sets of rust-proof gold eyelets. Cushioned with lambskin lining and a layer of memory foam, the shoes are attached to non-marking latex outsoles with Sperry’s signature Razor-Cut Wave-Siping system.

“Boat shoe? More like yacht shoe, if we’re talking swag-factor,” describes the Sperry website, making their case simpler as our first look at the retired Bond depicts him cruising in a Spirit 46 sailing yacht… albeit barefoot. And on that note, Sims concluded his piece on the deck shoe by referring to “the sock controversy… to wear, or not to wear—the argument has yet to be won.” For the action-packed sequence in The Living Daylights, Dalton’s Bond had indeed worn socks with his deck shoes, but—for the retired Bond’s moment of relative leisure in No Time to Die—Craig appears to wear his Sperrys sans socks.

Daniel Craig on the Jamaican set of No Time to Die in April 2019.

Read more about these shoes at From Tailors With Love and James Bond Lifestyle. The latter also makes a compelling case for the “non-Rivingston” Sperry Gold Cup Authentic Original boat shoe as a viable alternative, and—as it isn’t the screen-worn model—the tan colorway tends to be more frequently available. Though the screen-worn color is currently out of stock (as of June 2022), you can still purchase the Original Rivingston model from Sperry.

The Omega Watch

The end of Bond’s employment with MI6 evidently doesn’t mean the end of his preference for wearing Omegas, as the new model specifically designed for No Time to Die debuted during the scenes of Bond’s Jamaican retirement.

“When working with Omega, we decided that a lightweight watch would be key for a military man like 007,” Daniel Craig explained in Omega’s official announcement. The resulting product is the Omega Seamaster Diver 300M Co-Axial Master Chronometer (210.90.42.20.01.001), worn on a metal “shark mesh” or “Milanese” bracelet that closes through an adjustable-fit deployable clasp. The 42mm case and bracelet were made from a lightweight yet durable and anti-corrosive Grade 2 titanium that offer a tactical advantage given the resistance to reflecting light.

“I also suggested some vintage touches and colors to give the watch a unique edge,” Craig shared in the announcement, no doubt referring to the unique “tropical brown” unidirectional bezel and dial, made from a weight-saving aluminum and providing an attractive alternative to Bond’s usual black and blue dials. The hours are indicated by luminous non-numeric markers, with a “broad arrow” just above the 6:00 marker that James Bond Lifestyle reports was “used by British Armed Forces and visible on some vintage watches issued and owned by the British Ministry of Defense (especially the W.W.W. watches from the Second World War).”

The watch is powered by Omega’s self-winding Co-Axial Master Chronometer Calibre 8806 movement with a power reserve of 55 hours and resistant to magnetic fields reaching 15,000 gauss. In addition to the screw-in crown, the Seamaster has a helium escape valve extending from the side at the 10:00 position.

Navigating the open sea presents the perfect context for Bond’s newly designed Omega which, particularly one with enough vintage design to echo the aging character himself.

You can purchase the No Time to Die Omega from Amazon and Omega… or check out the more affordable alternatives for both the watch and the mesh bracelet identified by Iconic Alternatives.

The Sunglasses

Following phases wearing Persol and Tom Ford sunglasses, Craig’s Bond seems to have settled on Vuarnet as his preferred eyewear brand after wearing their glacier goggles in his previous film, Spectre. Bond rotates between two pairs of Vuarnets in No Time to Die, beginning with these Vuarnet Legend 06 sunglasses that he wears in Jamaica and—like so many other items from Bond’s closet—had already been a favorite of Daniel Craig’s in real life.

The frames come by their sleek vintage design honestly, as French star and style icon Alain Delon had popularized the Vuarnet 06 when he wore a black nylon pair in the 1969 thriller La Piscine. A half-century later and appropriately renamed the Legend, these Vuarnets again received the star treatment when Craig wore a brown-framed pair with Brownlynx mineral glass lenses in No Time to Die.

Bond’s Vuarnets battle the setting sun as he cruises into Port Antonio at the wheel of a vintage Land Rover.

You can still buy these glasses from Vuarnet, advertised as “James Bond’s choice.”

The Baseball Cap

For his cross-sea journey to Cuba, Bond pulls on what may be the least characteristic part of his costume: a dark blue cotton baseball cap. Plain baseball caps have recently emerged as an unlikely status symbol associated with wealth, an image popularized by shows like Succession, albeit the Roys favor expensive cashmere caps that “subtly telegraph their affluence”, according to Wall Street Journal‘s Jacob Gallagher.

With his wardrobe of expensive tailoring from Brioni, Brunello Cucinelli, and Tom Ford, some may expect Craig’s Bond to favor $500 Loro Piana caps à la the insufferable Kendall Roy, our Tommy Bahama-wearing retiree instead opts for the considerably more practical American workwear brand Carhartt, albeit de-branded for the finished movie. An “empty” square of stitching on the front suggests where the costume team would have removed the prominent brown leather Carhartt brand patch.

Made from a washed dark navy cotton canvas, the Carhartt cap follows traditional baseball cap styling with six triangular panels, each with a small ventilation grommet and top-stitched where sewn together, and an adjustable back strap.

In his Bond Suits analysis, Matt Spaiser observes that his plain navy baseball cap makes the character look more American—specifically like Craig’s style idol Steve McQueen as he appeared while piloting a glider in The Thomas Crown Affair.

You can read more about the Carhartt baseball cap at James Bond Lifestyle, which has identified the Carhartt “Odessa” Cotton Canvas cap as the likely contender for the screen-used version.

To buy similar caps, you can get the same “Odessa” with the prominent front branding that was removed for Bond or, if you want to avoid modification, the “Visor” with a plain front but a smaller Carhartt-branded tab sewn onto the left side. SIS Training Gear also offers a “Jamaica Yacht Hat” that resembles Craig’s screen-worn Carhartt without the need to remove or color over any logos; get 10% off your SIS Training Gear purchase with discount code “BAMF”!

The Waxed Jacket

In this sequence featuring brands both new and old (to Bond, anyway), the former agent introduced yet another Bond heritage brand to the outfit when pulling on a Barbour jacket for his unofficial mission to Cuba. This has been identified as the Barbour x Engineered Garments “Graham” jacket, a trimmed update of the classic Barbour Beaufort jacket designed in collaboration with Daiki Suzuki’s Engineered Garments with a waist-length cut and snap-up front that reminds me of a heavier-duty coach’s jacket.

This jacket perfectly suits the context, consistently casual like the rest of his outfit and in a neutral navy color that doesn’t threaten to clash while also evoking Commander Bond’s naval background and expertise at sea. The unwashed waxed cotton material would make for a comfortably lightweight layer in the tropical climate while still providing enough water resistance that would be an asset while sailing across the western Caribbean.

Like traditional deck jackets and other outerwear intended to resist the elements, this Barbour jacket has a wide storm-flap fly that fastens with five blue-finished snaps over a two-way brass-zipper with a circle pull. A substantial throat latch hangs under the left leaf of the wide collar, which closes over the neck by connecting to an exposed snap post on the right leaf should the wearer turn up his collar.

The full cut and raglan sleeves, left plain at the cuffs, offer Bond a substantial range of movement while navigating his boat. In addition to the wide-welted slash pockets, a large game pocket extends across the lower back with a vertical zip-entry on each side.

With his Barbour jacket now worn open, Bond meets his contact Paloma (Ana de Armas) in Santiago de Cuba, kicking off what the movie’s fans and detractors alike seem to agree would be a highlight of No Time to Die.

The “Graham” jacket has been discontinued (but still occasionally appearing on places like eBay), but—as of June 2022—the Barbour x Engineered Garments “Covert” jacket has generally adopted the same styling and can be purchased from Farfetch and MR PORTER.

You can learn more about the jacket from The Bond Experience, Iconic Alternatives, and James Bond Lifestyle.

The Gun

Dating back to many Ian Fleming novels and the first time Sean Connery introduced himself as “Bond, James Bond,” the Walther PPK had been well-established as 007’s duty weapon to the point that even many unfamiliar with firearms could identify this German-designed handgun as Bond’s preference. Originally chambered for the .32 ACP cartridge, the Daniel Craig characterization updated the compact pistol for a higher-caliber world by arming 007 with the slightly more powerful .380 ACP ammunition and the occasional modification of a PPK/S with a palm-print safety. Of course, once Bond is no longer in MI6’s service, he can no longer rely on the agency to equip him with firearms.

When Bond responds to a possible intruder in No Time to Die by arming himself with a Browning Hi-Power, we can assume that this is his personal pistol, perhaps having been stashed in a safe-house or privately purchased once MI6 demanded he hand in his latest Walther.  “Bond is a man of heritage, of classics, and of familiarity,” explained my friend Caleb Daniels, who manages the Commando Bond website and Instagram. “A retired 007, whether a ‘former SAS type’ or SBS, would have been very familiar with this firearm. It only fits that when reaching for a dedicated home defense firearm, he would reach for a functional classic like the Hi-Power.”

The Hi-Power had long been the designated service pistol of the British military, beginning with the 1950s when it was designated the L9 as the replacement for the aging Webley and Enfield revolvers; an upgraded Hi-Power was re-designated L9A1 during the following decade.

With his service record as a Commander in the Royal Navy and possibly the Special Boat Service (SBS), Bond would have been intricately familiar with the Hi-Power. The Walther PPK was a suitable choice when Bond needed a pistol that could be easily concealed, but his lifestyle in Jamaica would have reduced his armament needs to something reliable that he wouldn’t need to worry as much about carrying. With its double-stack magazine loaded with 9mm ammunition, the hardy Hi-Power would have been the perfect choice for his updated needs.

Caleb shared more about the specific Hi-Power that Bond wields on screen:

While we only see it for the briefest of instances, we can see that Bond’s pistol is interesting, as it is outfitted with a “commander”-style ring hammer and plastic grips which are typically found on MKIII Hi-Powers. This blending of old and new may just be a prop department accident, but I think it speaks well to Bond’s personal preferences. Ring hammers are popular on the Hi-Power platform as they prevent the dreaded hammer bit caused by the pistol’s short beavertail and aggressively sharp hammer. The newer production grips are a jet black polymer, and are detailed with a diamond stipple pattern and arched finger rests.

Bond, in his supreme confidence, carries this pistol inside the waistband at the appendix position (AIWB) without a holster or belt, for the briefest of moments, and then proceeds to lock it away in a concealed drawer prior to leaving his home to meet Felix Leiter. While I was disappointed to see Bond carry in such a way, it seems to have been just to briefly conceal the firearm, as he had not identified his mystery visitor as of yet, to provide an element of surprise if needed.

The curvature on the grips suggest the Mark III variant, which was introduced in 1988, though Bond’s Hi-Power could just be an older model modified with Mark III grips.

As its name implies, the Browning Hi-Power had been based on designs by firearms pioneer John Moses Browning in response to French military criteria, though Browning died in 1926, nearly a decade before the pistol was completed. It wasn’t until 1935 when his protégé Dieudonne Saive completed the design and Belgian firm Fabrique Nationale (FN) produced the first P-35 Grande Puissance, or “Hi-Power”, named after its then unprecedented 13-round magazine capacity. Given that the pistol was chambered for the 9x19mm Parabellum cartridge, the Hi-Power was a precursor to what firearm writers would eventually dub the “Wonder Nine”, though this term would be more traditionally applied to double-action/single-action (DA/SA) pistols that appeared decades later.

With its single-action trigger and short recoil operation, the Hi-Power echoed the functionality of Browning’s iconic 1911 pistol design, though even the designer had to work outside of that earlier design since he had sold the 1911 rights exclusively to Colt. Despite this obstacle, the Hi-Power has ultimately emerged as a well-regarded pistol in its own right and has been continuously produced by FN Herstal since 1935, aside from a short four-year hiatus when production ended in 2018, only to be resumed this year as the modified “FN High-Power”.

Through its long lifespan, the Hi-Power had also undergone the cosmetic and functional updates one would expect of a nearly century-old design, including the Mark III variant introduced in 1988. Daniel Craig had previously handled another Browning Hi-Power as Bond when, in Casino Royale, he grabbed a Mark III from an embassy official’s desk in Madagascar.

Caleb concluded his points to me by remarking on the artistic parallels of this armament, pointing out that “Bond liberates the pistol in Casino Royale from the desk drawer of the embassy worker attempting to draw it on him, and, in No Time to Die, he returns it to a drawer that is filmed and styled suspiciously similarly. It’s such a small detail—the angle of the camera and the light on the gun as it rests in the drawer—but it feels right to see it at both the beginning and the end of the explosive and emotional tenure of Daniel Craig’s James Bond, 007.”

Read more about the firearms of No Time to Die at IMFDB.

The Vehicle

Although we know he keeps access to at least one Aston Martin stashed away overseas, Bond embraces the rugged nature of his off-the-grid lifestyle in a weathered blue 1977 Land Rover Series III, a canvas-roofed SUV designed for off-roading.

In addition to the aforementioned ’85 Aston Martin, the Land Rover could be considered an additional—if less obvious—vehicular flashback to The Living Daylights, in which Timothy Dalton’s James Bond clung to the canvas roof of an OD Landy full of assassins before sending it off the side of the Rock of Gibraltar.

Bond nimbly handles his open-topped vintage Land Rover as he powers into Port Antonio.

The Series III was the final and most-produced Land Rover generation, with more than 440,000 vehicles manufactured from 1971 to 1985, the last year for “series” Land Rovers as the brand continued more widely expanding its lineup. Two- and four-door models were produced on both 88″ (short wheelbase) and 109″ (long wheelbase) platforms, and Mr. Bond drives an SWB two-door model produced in 1977, right in the middle of the Series III run.

Among these dimensional options, each “series” Land Rover also offered both diesel and petrol engines, though I suspect Bond would have be driving the latter, generating 62 horsepower from its 2.25-liter Rover inline-four engine. Unlike his Aston Martins, Land Rovers weren’t intended to be high-performance vehicles, instead gaining a well-earned reputation for durability and longevity as the first mass-produced four-wheel-drive vehicles for civilian usage.

Bond drives his blue 1977 Land Rover Series III through Jamaica.

1977 Land Rover Series III (SWB)

Body Style: 2-door off-road vehicle

Layout: front-engine, four-wheel-drive (4WD)

Engine: 193.4 cu. in. (2.25 L) Rover OHV I4

Power: 70 hp (52 kW; 71 PS) @ 4000 RPM

Torque: 119 lb·ft (161 N·m) @ 1500 RPM

Transmission: 4-speed manual

Wheelbase: 88 inches (2235 mm)

Length: 142.4 inches (3617 mm)

Width: 66 inches (1676 mm)

Height: 77.5 inches (1968 mm)

Read more about this Land Rover at James Bond Lifestyle and IMCDB.

What to Imbibe

Skyfall established Heineken beer as Bond’s retirement beverage of choice, seen again in No Time to Die as he enjoys a round of the distinctive Dutch pale lager with Felix Leiter and Logan Ash… arguably enjoying the beer more than the latter’s sycophantic company.

The last time we saw Bond drinking Heineken, he was “enjoying death” in self-exile in Skyfall. One could argue he’d enjoy actual death more than a conversation with Logan Ash.

Either the prospect of returning to active service or Ash’s excessive grinning sends Bond back to hard liquor, so he sidles up to the bar and orders simply “Scotch,” though we don’t see what the bartender pours him.

Returning home with Nomi, he prepares a drink of Blackwell Black and Gold dark rum, neat. Presumably, he was also going to pour one for his new houseguest, but she had sauntered into the bedroom before he could even produce a second rocks glass for her. You can read more about this rum at James Bond Lifestyle, which quotes founder Chris Blackwell explaining that “James Bond has been a big part of my life, from my childhood lunches with Ian Fleming at GoldenEye to being a location scout on the first movie, Dr. No. It was a pleasure working alongside the No Time To Die production team in Jamaica providing our iconic rum for the set in James Bond’s house, which has made this very special relationship come full circle. This is a rum that celebrates Jamaica, my friendships, and also my family legacy.”

Bond reaches for the Blackwell rum, identifiable by the lowercase “b” on the label around the bottle’s neck.

How to Get the Look

Daniel Craig as James Bond during production of No Time to Die (2021)

James Bond illustrates how even a secret agent dresses both affordably and comfortably in retirement, remaining true to his character’s overall sartorial philosophy… if understandably less polished.

• Navy-blue unwashed waxed cotton waist-length jacket with large collar, snap-closed throat latch, storm flap with 5-snap/zip fly, raglan sleeves with plain cuffs, slash side pockets, and zip-entry back game pocket
  • Barbour x Engineered Garments “Graham Jacket”
• Black lightweight silk twill long-sleeved shirt with convertible collar, breast pocket, 6-button plain front, 2-button mitred cuffs, and short side vents
  • Tommy Bahama “Catalina Twill Shirt”
• Light gray cotton five-pocket jeans
  • Tom Ford “Slim-Fit Selvedge Jeans”
• Brown full-grain nubuck leather two-eyelet moc-toe boat shoes
  • Sperry “Gold Cup Authentic Original Rivingston”
• Dark navy washed cotton canvas baseball cap
  • Carhartt “Odessa” Cotton Canvas Cap
  • SIS Training Gear “Jamaica Yacht Hat”
• Vuarnet Legend 06 brown nylon-framed sunglasses with Brownlynx mineral glass lenses
• Omega Seamaster Diver 300M Co-Axial Master Chronometer 210.90.42.20.01.001 titanium 42mm-cased self-winding watch with “tropical brown” aluminum dial and rotating bezel on titanium mesh bracelet

Do Yourself a Favor and…

Check out the movie. I also recommend watching David Zaritsky’s exclusive interview with Daniel Craig for The Bond Experience, discussing Bond style, No Time to Die, and more!

The Quote

You didn’t get the memo. I’m retired.

The post No Time to Die: Retired Bond’s Caribbean Casual Style appeared first on BAMF Style.

Daniel Craig as Benoit Blanc in Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022)

Vitals

Daniel Craig as Benoit Blanc, “in your words, the world’s greatest detective”

Spetses, Greece, May 2020

Film: Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery
Release Date: November 23, 2022
Director: Rian Johnson
Costume Designer: Jenny Eagan

WARNING! Spoilers ahead!

Background

As its quick ascension to the #1 movie on the service suggests, many are spending their Christmas holiday and its surrounding days watching Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, which had only a one-week theatrical release earlier this year before it premiered on Netflix on December 23. My wife and I watched it last night and enjoyed yet another fun, stylish, and unorthodox mystery centered around Southern-fried investigator Benoit Blanc, reprised by Daniel Craig after his entertaining turn in Knives Out.

Thanks to accounts like @whatsdanielwearing—which has long identified all the brands mentioned below—fans have long anticipated seeing how the idiosyncratic detective would be dressed in this latest installment.

Acclaimed costume designer Jenny Eagan updated Blanc’s closet from the tweedy threads appropriate for the autumnal New England setting of the first Knives Out to a warmer wardrobe befitting the sun-baked Greek seaside setting in Glass Onion. “There’s a dandy about him that takes you back to a time before,” she explained to Entertainment Weekly. “It borders on period and old-fashioned but yet contemporized a little bit. He’s a character dressing for where he’s going and what he’s getting into.”

Craig’s on- and off-screen style has often been compared to Steve McQueen, but his latest portrayal of Blanc adds another iconic influence to the mix: Cary Grant.

“In my dreams, I could look like Cary Grant,” Craig joked in a Netflix interview, adding that “the references for this are basically Jacques Tati and Cary Grant in To Catch a Thief.”

The most obvious visual reference to To Catch a Thief may be the flashback to the evening before a group of frenemies sails out to the innovative island estate owned by obnoxious tech entrepreneur Miles Bron (Edward Norton). While Blanc is content to allow Miles to believe that pandemic-driven boredom inspired him to follow the perhaps mistaken invitation to the island, the flashback reveals that it was part of a plan designed with Helen Brand (Janelle Monáe), twin sister of the recently deceased Andi Brand, who contacted Blanc and will be posing as her own dead sister to try to drive out her potential murderer during the weekend.

We’re informed multiple times that the action is set during May 2020, with the restaurant terrace full of masked waiters and sanitizers on the tables reminding us that this was the height of COVID-19 as Blanc and Helen meet one last time before the boat journey to finalize their plan. Proving that he doesn’t need one as a mystery-solving prize, Blanc sets down his iPad upon Helen’s arrival and shares that he’ll be at the dock early to “really lay on some Southern hokum” among their handful of suspects.

What’d He Wear?

Unlike his relatively limited wardrobe of shirts cycled with the same hopsack jacket and trousers in Knives Out, Benoit Blanc cycles through four outfits on screen during his trip to Greece in Glass Onion, including a tan suit with the jacket removed for his arrival, an old-fashioned seersucker swimsuit made by Anto Beverly Hills, and a beige linen safari-styled suit that was the focus of Bond Suits’ excellent post yesterday.

Worn the prior evening before Blanc joins the rest of the guests at the Glass Onion, the fourth outfit consists of a rakish casual look of a striped jumper, neckerchief, and slacks that was directly inspired by Cary Grant in To Catch a Thief. It feels like an appropriate time for Blanc to don the look as the scene depicts his seaside scheming, not unlike Grant as the mischievous yet charming cat burglar John Robie.

Homage without cosplay: Benoit Blanc channels John Robie’s Riviera style without trying to mimic the exact costume from Hitchcock’s stylish 1955 drama.

A uniting element of Benoit Blanc’s Greek style is the addition of a neckerchief, whether under the open collar of his shirts or banded around the top of his crew-neck sweater à la Robie. Consistent with the summery light colors of his outfit, Blanc wears a pale pink kerchief with a white repeating print, which @whatsdanielwearing identified as the Last Chance Textiles “Cotton Daisy Bandana” in shell pink organic cotton, though this colorway appears to be discontinued as of December 2022.

Knotted at the front of his throat, the bandana serves more than just an aesthetic purpose, catching sweat to protect the sweater’s neck-line.

Blanc wears a Boss Hugo Boss sweater in “beige multicolor” 100% cotton, which would wear comfortably cool in the heat of an evening in Spetses, where low temperatures rarely dropped below 76° in July 2021 when these scenes were being filmed, though it would have been about ten degrees cooler in May 2020, when it was set. (As of December 2022, the exact Boss sweater can still be sourced from outfitters like Saks Off 5th, though size availability is dwindling.)

The sweater has set-in sleeves finished with tan ribbed cuffs that echo a ribbed hem that goes unseen as Blanc wears the sweater tucked into his trousers. The crew-neck is banded with two black stripes narrower than those on the sweater’s body and sleeves.

The black bar stripes balanced against an eggshell white ground recall Breton stripes, which have been associated with the sea since their standardization for French sailors during the 1850s. Whether indicating significance or consequence of coincidence, Blanc’s stripes also echo the similarly striped cardigan that Helen wore while identifying Andi’s body at the morgue during a flashback-within-a-flashback.

Blanc’s off-white linen trousers echo the tailoring and style of his other suit trousers, with a classic high rise to Daniel Craig’s natural waist where they lack belt loops or braces (though that’s not to say there aren’t inside buttons for the latter), suspended by a slide-buckle adjuster on each side of the waistband.

Rather than traditional pleats, the trousers have an inverted box pleat on each side of the front, forming an inverted “V” shape that peaks just below the waistband and looks even more exaggerated when Blanc places his hands in the slanted side pockets, stretching out the fabric between the pleats. The trousers also have jetted back pockets and plain-hemmed bottoms with a full break.

Blanc wears a different pair of shoes with each outfit, beginning with these white loafers that @whatsdanielwearing identified as the Rivieras “Classic” slip-ons, worn either sockless or with low “no-show” socks. The shoes have white cotton canvas uppers, each consisting of a front piece and back piece that are trimmed with dark brown piping and finished with short white elastic side gussets.

For his brief stroll with Helen from the restaurant to the ice-cream stand, Blanc pulls on a soft khaki canvas trilby similar to the style famously worn by French comic Jacques Tati in a quartet of mid-century movies as Monsieur Hulot, whom Craig specifically cited as a direct influence on this part of Blanc’s costume. Like a cross between the slouchy bucket hat and a traditional trilby, Blanc’s soft-crowned hat has a narrow self-band and a short, stiff brim that’s elongated in the back.

Seen in beautiful close-up earlier on screen, Daniel Craig continues his Bond-informed tradition of wearing beautiful Omega watches on screen, here sporting the Omega Seamaster 1948 Co-Axial Master Chronometer Small Seconds, part of the Swiss watchmaker’s “1948” heritage series launched four years ago to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the Seamaster and limited to only 1,948 pieces.

Blanc specifically wears the ref. 511.12.38.20.02.002 on a brown non-grained calf leather strap with a 38mm stainless steel case. The silver domed dial boasts a “small seconds” sub-dial at 6:00 as well as non-numeric hour markers aside from 12, 3, and 9, all in 18-karat white gold that match the leaf-style hands.

How to Get the Look

Daniel Craig as Benoit Blanc in Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022)

Flashy dressing doesn’t always have to be complicated, as Benoit Blanc illustrates with his relatively simple and retro-minded casual seaside outfit in Glass Onion, combining inspiration from Cary Grant, Jacques Tati, and Daniel Craig’s own personal style in a light striped sweater, neckerchief, pleated trousers, and classic Omega.

• Eggshell-white and black bar-striped cotton crew-neck long-sleeved sweater with tan ribbed cuffs and hem
• Pale-pink and white-printed cotton bandana
• Off-white linen high-rise trousers with inverted box pleats, slide-buckle side adjusters, slanted side pockets, jetted back pockets, and plain-hemmed bottoms
• White cotton canvas slip-on shoes with brown piping
• Khaki canvas trilby
• Omega Seamaster 1948 Co-Axial Master Chronometer Small Seconds ref. 511.12.38.20.02.002 with stainless steel 38mm case and silver dial with 6:00 sub-dial on brown calf leather strap

Do Yourself a Favor and…

Check out the movie, now streaming on Netflix.

The Quote

I’m very bad at dumb things!

The post Glass Onion: Benoit Blanc’s Striped Sweater appeared first on BAMF Style.

Daniel Craig as James Bond in No Time to Die (2021). Photo credit: Nicola Dove.

Vitals

Daniel Craig as James Bond, retired British secret agent

Jamaica to Cuba, Spring 2020

Film: No Time to Die
Release Date: September 30, 2021
Director: Cary Joji Fukunaga
Costume Designer: Suttirat Anne Larlarb

Background

Happy birthday, Daniel Craig! Born March 2, 1968, the English actor celebrates his 55th birthday today. I had been debating how to sartorially celebrate Craig, especially considering his stylish reprisal of detective Benoit Blanc in Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, but my upcoming Jamaican honeymoon encouraged a return to his style in No Time to Die as a now-retired James Bond, living a life of comfortable solitude in Jamaica.

Bond fans are well-aware of the significance of Jamaica to the 007 series: it was at his Goldeneye estate on Oracabessa Bay where Ian Fleming wrote the first novel (Casino Royale) in 1952, most of the first movie (Dr. No) was set and filmed in Jamaica, and Roger Moore’s first Bond film (Live and Let Die) was also filmed extensively in Jamaica. There’s very much a “where it all began” association between Bond and this scenic Caribbean nation, making it all the more appropriate that No Time to Die establishes it the setting for Bond’s retirement, specifically a secluded home on Jamaica’s northeastern coast near Port Antonio.

Bond returns home from a tranquil day of fishing on his Spirit 46 sailing yacht, quickly detecting that he’s had an unplanned intruder. Having fished out a Browning Hi-Power, Bond stalks through his comfortable seaside villa until encountering the remnants of a Delectado cigar… suggesting his visitor had been his old CIA pal Felix Leiter (Jeffrey Wright).

What’d He Wear?

Since a tuxedoed Sean Connery first introduced himself as “Bond, James Bond” in Dr. No more than sixty years ago, agent 007 has been intrinsically linked with an aspirational wardrobe of tailored suits and luxury clothing. We’ve seen Mr. Bond go rogue on several occasions, but once he seems to have hung up his shoulder holster for good, Daniel Craig’s retired Bond dispenses with the need for the sharp duds associated with the character as he spends his seafaring retirement in a tattered T-shirt and inexpensive shorts. (You can read more about this outfit at Bond Suits and James Bond Lifestyle.)

Of course, this is still Daniel Craig’s Bond so the T-shirt is a product of British luxury brand Orlebar Brown, specifically the “OB-T” model in light gray melange “super-soft” jersey-knit cotton, currently retailing for $115 as of March 2023. (Despite the franchise’s reputation for conspicuous product placement, the shirt was modified for the screen with the telltale red-lettered “O.B.” tag removed from the hem.)

The short-sleeved T-shirt’s tailored fit shows off Craig’s well-maintained physique, though the shortness of the rounded hem suggests that it’s still undersized, adding a lived-in, washed-and-worn quality to the shirt also characterized by the fraying along the edges and the tears along the seams of the round crew-neck and around the set-in arm holes.

Shop the shirt:

The Orlebar Brown "OB-T" tailored fit T-shirt worn by Daniel Craig in No Time to Die can be purchased from several outfitters:

• Marissa Collections ($115)
• MR PORTER ($95)
• Orlebar Brown ($115)

Prices and availability current as of Feb. 28, 2023.

Based on the aquatic context and the water-repellant synthetic fabric, I initially assumed Bond was wearing navy-blue swim trunks, but the excellent Instagram account @whatsdanielwearing identified these as Jed North “Agile” shorts, specifically intended for athletic endeavors like bodybuilding, running, and lifting.

Made from a soft, stretchy, and sweat-wicking blend of 90% polyester and 10% spandex, these unlined shorts have a drawstring waist, black zip-up side pockets, and a short (4″) inseam. As with the T-shirt, these were modified to conceal their maker by removing the neon green “Jed North” logo from the left thigh and replacing the matching neon drawstring with a much more subdued dark navy drawstring.

You can read more about these shorts at James Bond Lifestyle, including a primer on how to modify them from the stock version to resemble the screen-worn shorts.

His big catch in one hand and speargun in the other, Bond strides up the dock to his seaside Jamaican home. Note that his Orlebar Brown T-shirt had its hem shortened (thus removing the brand tag) and the Jed North shorts have also been de-branded.

Shop the shorts:

The Jed North "Agile" bodybuilding shorts modified for Daniel Craig to wear in No Time to Die are among the most affordable items ever identified as a Bond garment, available from several outfitters:

• Amazon ($25.95)
• Jed North ($30)

Prices and availability current as of Feb. 28, 2023.

After wearing Persol and Tom Ford sunglasses, Craig’s Bond landed on Vuarnet as his preferred eyewear brand after wearing their glacier goggles in his previous film, Spectre. Bond rotates between two pairs of Vuarnets in No Time to Die, beginning with these Vuarnet Legend 06 sunglasses that he wears in Jamaica. Vuarnet advertises these as “James Bond’s choice” and, like so many other items from Bond’s screen closet, they’re also a real-life favorite of Daniel Craig.

The frames come by their sleek retro design honestly, as French star and style icon Alain Delon had popularized the Vuarnet 06 when he wore a black nylon pair in the 1969 thriller La Piscine. A half-century later, these Vuarnets have been appropriately renamed the Legend model before they received the star treatment in No Time to Die when Craig wore a brown-framed pair with Brownlynx mineral glass lenses, suspended around his neck on a blue neoprene Croakies® strap.

The end of Bond’s employment with MI6 evidently doesn’t mean the end of his preference for wearing Omegas, as the new model specifically designed for No Time to Die debuted during the scenes of Bond’s Jamaican retirement.

“When working with Omega, we decided that a lightweight watch would be key for a military man like 007,” Daniel Craig explained in Omega’s official announcement. The resulting product is the Omega Seamaster Diver 300M Co-Axial Master Chronometer (210.90.42.20.01.001), worn on a metal “shark mesh” or “Milanese” bracelet that closes through an adjustable-fit deployable clasp. The 42mm case and bracelet were made from a lightweight yet durable and anti-corrosive Grade 2 titanium that offer a tactical advantage given the resistance to reflecting light.

“I also suggested some vintage touches and colors to give the watch a unique edge,” Craig shared in the announcement, no doubt referring to the unique “tropical brown” unidirectional bezel and dial, made from a weight-saving aluminum and providing an attractive alternative to Bond’s usual black and blue dials. The hours are indicated by luminous non-numeric markers, with a “broad arrow” just above the 6:00 marker that James Bond Lifestyle reports was “used by British Armed Forces and visible on some vintage watches issued and owned by the British Ministry of Defense (especially the W.W.W. watches from the Second World War).”

The watch is powered by Omega’s self-winding Co-Axial Master Chronometer Calibre 8806 movement with a power reserve of 55 hours and resistant to magnetic fields reaching 15,000 gauss. In addition to the screw-in crown, the Seamaster has a helium escape valve extending from the side at the 10:00 position.

You can purchase the No Time to Die Omega from Amazon and Omega… or check out the more affordable alternatives for both the watch and the mesh bracelet identified by Iconic Alternatives.

Bond finds the remnants of Felix’s cigar.

After tossing his black 30.5″-bladed Riffe Defender fins on the dock upon disembarking his fishing yacht, Bond spends the rest of the scene barefoot, though behind-the-scenes photography show that Daniel Craig wore mustard-colored Havaianas flip flop sandals with blue straps on set.

The Guns

Bond emerges from his fishing yacht carrying a Riffe Euro E-55 speargun, as identified by James Bond Lifestyle. These are designed specifically for underwater spearfishing, though Bond has also improvised using a speargun for defensive purposes, as seen when Sean Connery’s 007 used one to swiftly dispatch of the silent henchman Vargas in Thunderball.

Spearguns typically fall into two categories: air-powered pneumatic spearguns and rubber band-powered elastic spearguns. Bond’s Riffe is the latter, propelled by two heavy-duty black-coated rubber bands. The E-55 has a 32″ low-profile teak stock that houses the actual spear, with a stainless steel two-piece trigger mechanism and spring-loaded safety.

Bond’s speargun skills landed him a hefty haul.

After a spot of cigar ash tips him off to a potential intruder while he was away fishing, Bond arms himself with a Browning Hi-Power that we can assume is his personal pistol after he likely had to turn in his MI6-issued Walther PPK following his retirement. (We don’t see where Bond had fished it out from, but fans of The Sopranos may be suspicious of why he had been carrying that large fish in the previous scene…)

“Bond is a man of heritage, of classics, and of familiarity,” explained my friend Caleb Daniels, who manages the Commando Bond website and Instagram, previously quoted in my post about Bond’s black Tommy Bahama shirt in the subsequent scene. “A retired 007, whether a ‘former SAS type’ or SBS, would have been very familiar with this firearm. It only fits that when reaching for a dedicated home defense firearm, he would reach for a functional classic like the Hi-Power.”

This production photo of Daniel Craig, armed with his Browning Hi-Power and noirishly illuminated by the Jamaican sun filtered through his blinds, was one of the first official images released from No Time to Die.

The Hi-Power design dates back to firearms pioneer John Moses Browning, whose protégé Dieudonne Saive brought the pistol to fruition after Browning died in 1926. In 1935, the Belgium firm Fabrique Nationale (FN) produced the first P-35 Grande Puissance, or “Hi-Power”, named in reference to its then-unprecedented 13-round magazine capacity. Given that the pistol was chambered for the 9x19mm Parabellum cartridge, the Hi-Power was a precursor to what firearm writers would eventually dub the “Wonder Nine”, though this term would be more traditionally applied to double-action/single-action (DA/SA) pistols that appeared decades later.

With its single-action trigger and short recoil operation, the Hi-Power echoed the functionality of Browning’s iconic 1911 pistol design, though even the designer had to work outside of that earlier design since he had sold the 1911 rights exclusively to Colt. Despite this obstacle, the Hi-Power has ultimately emerged as a well-regarded pistol in its own right and has been continuously produced by FN Herstal since 1935, aside from a short four-year hiatus when production ended in 2018, only to be resumed this year as the modified “FN High-Power”.

The Hi-Power had long been the designated service pistol of the British military, beginning with the 1950s when it was designated the L9 as the replacement for the aging Webley and Enfield revolvers; an upgraded Hi-Power was re-designated L9A1 during the following decade.

With his service record as a Commander in the Royal Navy and possibly the Special Boat Service (SBS), Bond would have been intricately familiar with the Hi-Power. The character’s iconic Walther PPK was a suitable choice when Bond needed a pistol that could be easily concealed, but his lifestyle in Jamaica would have reduced his armament needs to something reliable that he wouldn’t need to worry as much about carrying outside of his home. With its double-stack magazine loaded with the universally obtainable 9mm ammunition, the hardy Hi-Power would have been the perfect choice for his updated needs.

Read more about the firearms of No Time to Die at IMFDB.

How to Get the Look

Daniel Craig as James Bond in No Time to Die (2021)

An abused gray T-shirt, gym shorts, and Croakies may not be an outfit you’d expect from James Bond, but you have to admit it’s pretty perfect for a fit fiftysomething spending his retirement fishing in solitude off the Jamaican coast.

• Gray heathered cotton crew-neck short-sleeve T-shirt
• Navy polyester/spandex short-inseam athletic shorts with navy drawstring waist and two black-zip side pockets
• Vuarnet Legend 06 brown nylon-framed sunglasses with Brownlynx mineral glass lenses on blue neoprene Croakies®
• Omega Seamaster Diver 300M Co-Axial Master Chronometer 210.90.42.20.01.001 titanium 42mm-cased self-winding watch with “tropical brown” aluminum dial and rotating bezel on titanium mesh bracelet

Do Yourself a Favor and…

Check out the movie.

The post No Time to Die: Retired Bond’s T-Shirt and Shorts in Jamaica appeared first on BAMF Style.

Daniel Craig as Benoit Blanc in Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022). Photo by John Wilson.

Vitals

Daniel Craig as Benoit Blanc, famous Southern detective

Spetses, Greece, May 2020

Film: Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery
Release Date: November 23, 2022
Director: Rian Johnson
Costume Designer: Jenny Eagan

Background

Three years ago this month, eccentric billionaire tech developer Miles Bron (Edward Norton) pulled together a half-dozen of his closest friends frenemies for a weekend at his private Greek island. It’s May 2020, and—as in real life—the height of the COVID-19 lock-downs, though there appear to be no restrictions for Miles’ upper-class coterie.

While Miles welcomes some from outside his college clique, such as the laidback loafer Derol (Noah Segan), he’s unpleasantly surprised to greet the woman he had known as his former business partner Andi Brand (Janelle Monáe) and the famed detective Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig).

Rian Johnson’s first Knives Out film, credited with reviving the classic murder mystery genre, was set in a grand, isolated mansion, evoking genre predecessors like Murder By Death, Clue, and Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None, while Benoit Blanc’s sun-baked seaside reappearance in Glass Onion was said to be inspired by vacation-set whodunits like The Last of Sheila and Christie’s Death on the Nile and Evil Under the Sun.

What’d He Wear?

After spending the first Knives Out buttoned up in autumnal tweeds and wool, Benoit Blanc can let loose a bit for the warm Hellenic mystery, rotating through a collection of linen suits and shirts as well as a fittingly idiosyncratic seersucker swimsuit made by Anto Beverly Hills, worn while navigating the swimming pools and smokeless gardens of Miles Bron’s private island.

Perhaps to disguise the fact that the erstwhile James Bond would be in better shape than expected of a fussy detective, Craig was outfitted in an old-fashioned two-piece swimsuit consisting of a short-sleeved pullover short and thigh-length shorts, both made of a matching white-and-blue awning-striped seersucker cotton, presumably treated for some degree of water resistance.

“That is quite a piece!” Blanc comments of the custom 1911 that Duke (Dave Bautista) keeps holstered, even when in the pool.

Maureen Lee Lenker reported for Entertainment Weekly that costume designer Jenny Eagen was inspired by no less than Frank Sinatra for Benoit’s bathing costume. “Initially her idea was for something made of terry cloth, a very ’60s look, but when visiting her shirt-maker, she was struck with inspiration. ‘He was like, “Oh, my dad used to build Frank Sinatra something,”‘ she remembers. ‘His dad was also a shirt maker and he had the patterns. He brought out old pictures and I was like, “This could be amazing.”‘

Ol’ Blue Eyes wasn’t the only mid-century crooner who had a hand in Benoit Blanc’s sartorial development, as Eagen explained to the Costume Designers Guild that the shirt pattern had been originally created for Paul Anka in the ’70s.

Blanc struggles to understand Miles Bron’s perhaps misguided understanding of “disruption” while Birdie (Kate Hudson) appreciates her magazine cover that Miles keeps around his home as set dressing.

The hip-length shirt has a flat collar and a V-shaped neckline that dips to mid-chest, where the left side elegantly overlaps. The shirt also has elbow-length sleeves, side pleats on the back, and welted hand pockets positioned just above the hem.

The matching flat-front shorts are banded in dark blue across the top with a matching dark blue drawstring. Blanc appears to wear them over white underwear, perhaps to protect his modesty when wading through the water in the light-weight cloth.

Blanc panics as his cigar triggers the alarms in Miles’ smokeless garden.

As with all of his Greek outfits in Glass Onion, Benoit Blanc wears a neckerchief that adds a dandyish dash à la Cary Grant in the early Riviera-set scenes of To Catch a Thief. He contrasts the white and blue of his outfit with a yellow bandana, specifically the Golden Yellow Floral Bandana made by Abracadana. The brand describes the kerchief as inspired by ancient Bohemian textiles, with the white floral design screen-printed on a tightly woven 100% cotton quilting fabric.

Blanc protects his stainless Omega Seamaster 1948 Co-Axial Master Chronometer by not wearing it into the pool, but he continues wearing his Cutler & Gross 1302 sunglasses with their retro-inspired round “Honey Turtle” acetate frames and titanium lugs and temples.

Taking cover behind a bronzed ass, the dandily attired Blanc overhears yet another incriminating conversation.

He completes the look with the “Settat” sandals from Manolo Blahnik, the high-end Spanish shoe designer famously celebrated on Sex and the City. Each upper consists of two pieces of woven cream-colored raffia palm crossing over the instep (leaving the toes exposed) and light-brown calf leather slingback straps with a brass-toned rectangular single-prong buckle along the outside to adjust the fit around the foot.

One minute you’re squatting together while enjoying Jared Leto’s hard kombucha, the next you’re unraveling the murder mystery set up as that weekend’s entertainment.

To my knowledge, all of the above brands worn on screen by Daniel Craig were first identified widely by the excellent Instagram account @whatsdanielwearing, a must-follow for fans of the actor and his on- and off-screen style.

What to Imbibe

“Have a hard kombucha, they’re actually pretty good… Jared Leto sent ’em over,” Miles attests as Blanc strides onto the deck of his pool. Branded “Red Plant”, Leto’s kombucha joins the incredible array of fictional celebrity-endorsed consumables in the Knives Out universe, including Jeremy Renner’s hot sauce that becomes a more significant plot point than you may expect.

I’ve only drank kombucha a handful of times and assumed that it had only originated a few years before I first heard of it around 2015, but “kombucha tea’s alleged healing properties have been touted since it originated in China more than 2,000 years ago,” according to UPMC HealthBeat in a post that helpfully explores the supposed health benefits and determines that—while many of its benefits are mostly unproven—the fermentation process that creates kombucha also yields a wealth of gut-friendly probiotics.

From my state of relative unfamiliarity, I was surprised to learn that hard kombucha actually exists… though Jared Leto has yet to toss his enterprising hat into this arena. Adding a degree of alcohol may somewhat nullify the positive impact of probiotic-rich kombucha, though Health.com concludes that “hard kombuchas are a comparable alternative to beer, wine, or mixed drinks.”

How to Get the Look

Daniel Craig as Benoit Blanc in Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022). Photo by John Wilson.

Benoit Blanc took his seaside styling cues from mid-century icons like Cary Grant and Frank Sinatra, dressing with memorable eccentricity for a sunny afternoon by the pool in a matching seersucker shirt and shorts, accessorized with one of his usual colorful neckerchiefs, luxury sandals, and natty sunglasses.

• White-and-blue awning-striped seersucker cotton short-sleeved pullover shirt with V-neck collar and hip pockets
• White-and-blue awning-striped seersucker cotton flat-front shorts with white-banded waist and side pockets
• Yellow and white floral-print cotton neckerchief
• Cream-colored raffia palm sandals with light brown calf leather slingback straps
• Cutler & Gross 1302 “Honey Turtle” tortoise round-framed sunglasses with titanium lugs and temples

Do Yourself a Favor and…

Check out the movie, now streaming on Netflix.

The Quote

It is a dangerous thing to mistake speaking without thought with speaking the truth.

The post Glass Onion: Benoit Blanc’s Striped Seersucker Swimwear appeared first on BAMF Style.