In Never Say Never Again, Sean Connery wears an odd choice of clothing aboard the Flying Saucer. A sky blue shirt with black trousers is more like the standard uniform today for a casual office than it is a stylish yachting outfit. The sky blue shirt from Turnbull & Asser has a spread collar, button-down cocktail cuffs, shoulder pleats and a front placket. The black trousers—probably made of tropical wool—have a flat front, slanted side pockets and plain hems. Connery wears a black shoes and a black belt with a brass buckle. With the exception of button-down cocktail cuffs, this boring outfit would fit in without notice at almost any business casual job. For a yacht, cream gabardine trousers and brown shoes would have been a more fitting choice, like we saw from the cream suit from earlier in the film.
Even if it’s Sean Connery… I must say I really dislike this outfit.
I completely agree with you Matt, it’s just plain boring, no interest at all. No nice colour combination, and the shirt with such cuffs worn without a tie make me think of today’s yuppies wearing double cuffs shirts with a suit but without a tie – plain ridiculous. The belt looks the same as the one he wore with the grey suit, and its shape is quite ugly. The whole outfit is as interesting as the movie, as a matter of fact. Connery should have worn a blazer or a dark/medium blue shirt with light colored trousers.
I always thought the button-down cocktail cuffs were a specificity of Frank Foster, I guess I am wrong.
I agree Matt. The ensemble you suggest would be much better. or something like Moore’s outfit on Melina’s yacht in FYEO, with the stone trousers and lemon sports shirt. As we’ve noted before, unless given sartorial guidance Connery hadn’t a clue. We saw him tread similar dubious territory in YOLT with the pink linen shirt and cocktail cuff matched with the grey wool trousers and sandals.
A mishmash, like the movie as a whole. As an aside though, weren’t the shirts from this movie with the button down cocktail cuff by Foster, although the placket here is definitely not Foster’s signature style. I didn’t think T&A produced a cuff like this.
Both Foster and T&A made shirts for this film, but I saw the cuff pattern at T&A so I know they made some shirt. The pattern didn’t specify that it was a button-down, but it had to be. I suspect they copied Foster’s cuff.
The outfit as seen here is truly non-descriptive, but I believe it’s somewhat out of context. NSNA has a bunch of deleted material and I know there was a filmed scene aboard the Flying Saucer where Bond, Largo, and Domino do in fact eat “lunch” together and Bond is wearing a dark coloured suit (perhaps navy, or black?)….I’m going on a speculative limb here, but perhaps after lunch Bond removes some of the superfluous items of the suit (i.e. tie & jacket) and escapes his cabin to meet Domino in the dance studio??
There is a dance studio in the yacht ?? Oh my God… This definitely isn’t the yacht of Adolfo Celi’s real Largo !
It looks like he forgot his suit jacket and tie.
Dreadfully bland, as noted by everyone above.
It’s also worth pointing out, once again, how out of shape Connery looked in this film. Roger Moore catches a lot of criticism for his physical condition in his later Bond films. Yet, despite obviously suffering the effects of advanced age, Moore never looked as sloppy as Connery does here.
But these aren’t Bond’s own clothes. They were provided by Largo after he was ‘captured’ onboard Largo’s boat. So, they weren’t Bond’s own choice of clothes, so we can forgive hin for that.
David
But they don’t play along with that. The shirt matches the rest of the shirts from the film, and the belt is identical to another from the film as well.
Couldn’t agree more with this article. It’s desperately bland and as you say the typical safe office option, for those who think clothes are there just to cover our bodies IMHO.
It is the outfit from the scene in Scrubland, when James Bond met the Doctor in his Hotel Room.
No, he wears grey trousers there.
This is just middle-aged mediocrity. And yes, Connery is not in good shape for the role though at least he was sort of playing a middle-aged secret agent.
But I will say that this seems to be the clothing that Largo gives him, at least according to what we see on screen. Still bad.
If the costume designer actually wanted these to look like clothes from Largo, the shirt wouldn’t match Bond’s other shirts in the film. The same goes for the belt. From the costuming perspective it looks like these are supposed to be Bond’s own clothes, even if it doesn’t fit the story.
That style of shirt cuff is very unique and the color and fit are nice enough but apart from that the outfit here is as unremarkable as you say. Nothing offensive but nothing special either. As Bond is on a yacht here it’s really a missed opportunity for a blazer, which he does wear earlier in the film.
Prior to this scene Bond was SCUBA diving under the boat examining the hull, he was captured when a hatch in the hull opened and he was drawn inside. Therefore he was in diving gear at the time of capture and these cannot be his own clothes.
This scene is in the dance studio on the boat where he is about to “provoke a reaction” because he suspects Largo is watching him and Domino through a two way mirror.
David
As far as the story goes, you’re right that they cannot be his own clothes. But it doesn’t appear that the costumiers followed the story. If they did, Bond wouldn’t be wearing a shirt and belt that’s identical to the others he wears in the film. Thus, the context of these clothes is irrelevant.
If you’re going to be a supervillain, you need to stock better giveaways in your lair…like that snappy Nehru jacket Dr. No provided on Crab Key….
Boring? Maybe. But he is clean and neat, and that is more than Largo and his scurvy crew deserve. Don’t know who made the belt but wish it did a better job of keeping Bond’s trousers on an even keel – they need hitching up at the front. As this Disco Volante is like a floating office building, business casual is perhaps appropriate, particularly as Bond is being held in the interior. For those who have not seen NSNA – this Bond in not past it. The fight at Shrublands alone would cripple anyone who was not on top of his game.
For anyone who has seen the movie, does anyone know what kind of a jacket Largo wears in the Casino/Videogame scene. Its really shiny! Thanks.
Ok.. I do not recognize ware the belt comes from in the last picture.. please tell me.. thanks
I asked because I do not know.