The Perfect Gentleman Issue 8 - Halloween | Page 9

While the style of the James Bond villains
demonstrates parity between them and 007, “Die
Hard” offered the bespoke suited, sophisticated
Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman) as a counterpoint to
the t-shirt clad, all-American tough-guy hero
John McClain (Bruce Willis). Gruber is arguably
one of the greatest bad guys in movie history. If it
weren’t for his brutality, and complete disregard
for human life, he’s the guy we would all like to
be – well groomed, educated, and charming.
The 1988 film came out as American movie
heroes ditched traditional style for muscles and
firepower as demonstrated in popular movies
starring Willis, Sylvester Stallone and Arnold
Schwarzenegger. The attitude in Hollywood films
during this period of “casual Fridays” is that only
a villain would be concerned with dress and
deportment.
Luckily, we can borrow from the fine style
examples these baddies have set for us without
having to take a Los Angeles skyscraper hostage
on Christmas Eve or suck the blood of
unsuspecting villagers.

If you are interested in moving smoothly from
your evil lair to a night out on the town, look no
further than the James Bond movie series.
Though Dr. No’s Nehru jacket didn’t stand the
test of time, it looked dapper in 1962 when the
movie hit theaters. It also looked pretty good on
Dr. Evil in the Austin Powers franchise.
Bond baddies have always provided a
well-dressed counterpart to the Savile Row
tailored secret agent. In “Goldfinger” (1964),
Auric Goldfinger (Gert Frobe) cuts a dashing
figure in his gold and brown silk dinner jacket as
he attempts to slice Bond in half on a laser table.
Besides fighting 007, Kamal Khan (Louis Jordan)
battles the heat of India in style in “Octopussy”
(1983). And Javiar Bardem as Silva in “Skyfall”
(2012), is probably one of Bond’s best-tailored
villains.

STYLISH GENTLEMAN

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