First, about the movie. Quantum of Solace might not have lived up to Casino Royale, but they both felt sort of the same. Meaning: They were gritty, crisp, and didn’t have much if any comic-book blockbuster feel. The first two Daniel Craig Bond movies were a scrubbing of all the saccharin aftertaste from the Pierce Brosnan run. Skyfall heads back just a little in that direction, which is going to be concerning for some fans. But the general public is going to eat it up. You have to think the producers will keep going on this smoother, easier to swallow track, instead of the glass shards and nails feel from Casino Royale and QoS. Craig, once again, is great. Javier Bardem is even better. And the clothes, while understated, you can’t miss. Here’s some more affordable options of select pieces seen in the movie, ordered by location…
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Istanbul. The Suit – Light Grey (fine stripe): Indochino Essential Grey – $379
It is awfully hard to pick up the stripes from a distance, but they’re in there. But the shade is a dead ringer for the worsted Indochino Essential grey. Plus, he’s beltless, and the side tab advanced option from Indochino will help keep your pants up in that situation. Functional buttons too, and leave a few undone. Bond’s suit is a 2/3 roll, which the character favors throughout the movie, but the 2-button option here is just fine.
The Tie – Light grey with dark dots/diamonds: Express – $49.90 or TheTieBar – $15.00
That’s a lot more, uh, “matchy-matchy” than most of us would like to take on. The monochromatic look is risky even though it’s minimalist. On the slim side too. Not easy to find a perfect match It’s a silver/grey over black (or vice versa). There’s also this extra long option from Nordstrom, but that runs almost $50 and is a more traditional 3.5″ wide.
The Shoes – Black dress chukkas: Ciro Lendini – $183.00
Yep. Boots. When one is hauling ass all over Istanbul, protection against ankle abrasions is a nice thing to have. Ciro Lendini appear to be a Yoox house brand, and while seemingly not bulletproof, they do hold up quite well. These are a close match, but if you want something sleeker try the Newell cap toe from Johnston & Murphy. They have a trimmer silhouette and the closed (not chukka) oxford style lacing keeps em’ real aerodynamic. Full review on those here.
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Note: There is another location in between these two, but Bond’s choice of wardrobe is, well… it ain’t the slickest looking stuff. Think somewhere between Roseanne and Captain Ron. Nice leather jacket though.
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London. The Suit – Dark Glen Plaid: Bar III – $235 – $299 | J. Crew – $650
Was it blue? Charcoal? The costume designer says it was navy, so let’s go with that. At first it looked striped, but during one of the close ups you could see what appeared to be a dark Glen Plaid. The Macy’s house brand Bar III makes one, but the lapels are crazy slim. J. Crew has a stunner, but the price is a shock to the checkbook (don’t forget the pants, they’re not the easiest to find on the J. Crew website).
The Shirt – Light Blue Tab Collar: Paul Fredrick Trim Fit – $49.50
Why do Bond’s shirts have a strangle hold on his tie knot while the points are seemingly glued to his clavicle? That’s the visual you get with a tab-collar shirt. They’re tough to find in slim fit, and Paul Fredrick might be your best bet.
The Tie – Plum Slim Pindot: DKNY Tobiko Silk – $36.99
More small patterns. No big fat stripes on 007’s tie. Tiny dots. The been-at-Macy’s-forever DKNY Tobiko feels pretty well made and it’s slim too. Ties might be rebounding from razor skinny, but Bond keeps it slim in this movie.
The Coat – Single breasted topcoat in navy or black: Uniqlo Chesterfield Coat – $129.90
Not the warmest thing in the world, but man does it look good for the price. All but sold out right now.
Shanghai. The Peacoat: Try your local Army/Navy Surplus Store
The Billy Reid version worn in the movie might be incredible, but there’s hardly a better value than a real U.S. Navy issue peacoat. They’ll usually run around $150, and they’re worth every cent. No leather backed collar seam though. I know, somehow you’ll be able to survive without that. There’s also the Target Merona one too, if you’re on a serious budget. Not bad for $60. More outerwear over here.
Macau & afterward. The Tux – Midnight Shawl Collar Tux: Indochino – $379.00
Limited (affordable) options here guys. Indochino is by far your best bet. Just choose a shawl collar during the customization process, and make sure you can get the entire shawl lapel to be satin (strange that they’ve got piping on their site). One button front too. And then there’s always this one Sabir featured at MensStylePro… but it’s going to cost a hell of a lot more. UPDATE: Thanks to ckniep in the comments for the update on the lapels. He almost bought this for his wedding, but Indochino told him that they couldn’t do a full satin lapel. Which is pretty strange. Too bad. I think plenty of guys would take this for a spin if they wouldn’t have that odd piping.
The Tuxedo Shirt Studs: Mother of Pearl – $39.99
Consider yourself very lucky if you own your own tux. Consider yourself born with a golden horseshoe up your rear if you’ve gotten to the point where you own your own MoP stud set. Elegant but not silly. Mother of Pearl tux studs make it crystal clear that you’re not renting (not that there’s a ton of rental places slinging midnight blue shawl collar tuxedos). Reasonably priced through amazon.
The Watch – Diver: Christopher Ward C60 Charcoal Bezel – $635
There’s actually two Omega watches this time. A Planet Ocean with a black dial, and a blue dial Seamaster Aqua Terra. This is where the style snobs should be throwing fits because once again, 007 has worn not just a watch with black tie (or in this case, midnight navy), but a sportier, stainless band watch at that. Who cares. The Christopher Ward is way up there in price. Here’s a few more affordable options that resemble, at least a little, either the Planet Ocean or Aqua Terra.
- Invicta Pro Diver Automatic – $84.53
- Bulova Marine Star Blue dial – $136
- Bulova 98B131 – $206.25
- Orient Ray – $161 w/ FALL2012
- Orient Symphony – $150.50 w/ FALL2012
- Victorinox Alliance – $339.27
- Tissot T Tempo – $549.20
The Sunglasses – Traditional aviators: KW – $10 | RE – $119.00
The Tom Ford Marko sunglasses used in Skyfall are much more traditional looking than the silver models Craig wore in Quantum of Solace. They’ve got that traditional droop to the lenses, and don’t square off like Ray Ban Caravans or the AO Original Pilot
The Scotch – 50 yr old MacCallan: 10 yr old + a sharpie – $29.99
FIFTY years old? Why not a century at that point? For perspective, 41 year old will run you $700. The odd-duck (or is it even?) 10-year old is part of the “Fine Oak” line. That’s when they take their booze and mature it in European Sherry casks as well as American Bourbon casks.
London Part II. The Suit – Charcoal Pinstripe: Suit Supply – $399
One of the annoying things about Suitsupply is their inability to keep a solid suit in their lowest price, $399 line. But since we’re looking at a pinstripe suit, we need not be annoyed. Bond is always on the move, and the outstanding-for-the-price construction of Suitsupply moves extremely well. 2/3 roll again on the actual suit in the movie, and the lapels are quite a bit slimmer, but this option from Suitsupply won’t treat you wrong.
Scotland. The Sport Jacket – Orvis Field Coat – $198
| J. Crew Millerain – $228
Like the light jacket Eve wore in Turkey, this one’s made by Barbour. And you can even sign up to win one direct from Barbour. Half blazer, half field jacket, finding a suitable & affordable replacement for this hybrid ain’t easy. This is something that’s close enough at the sides to have that blazer silhouette, so extra tailoring on anything more square will have to be done. Bond’s has one welt pocket at the chest, which is akin to the old L.E.C. herringbone sport coat from last year… but it’s not a tweedy wool hunting blazer. If you want to head in that wool direction, you’ve got some options.
The Sweater – Medium Blue Crew: Banana Republic – $69.50 ($48.65 when 30% off)
A new arrival from Banana Republic in a nylon, wool, rayon mix. Sounds funky, but BR has had some really good success with blended sweaters in the past. Perfect color too, since the sweater in Skyfall isn’t a deep navy, nor is it a baby blue. Right in-between.
The Scarf – Dark red cashmere: B.R. – $120 ($84 @ 30% off), Pure Cashmere – $39.99
Let’s be honest. If some dude showed up to shoot trap at a range here in ‘murica, he’d probably be laughed off the range if he sauntered up with a scarf tied jauntily around his neck. But hey, it works in the movie. Remember, the cheaper cashmere gets usually means the more suspect it is. Head to a store like Ross or Marshall’s and see if you can’t find a deep red scarf made of Merino.
Thoughts on Skyfall from you fellas? Was there anything else in the movie, wardrobe-wise, that stood out to you? Like, say, the watch the psychiatrist was wearing? Leave it all, except spoilers of course, in the comments below…