How to dress like Michael Caine
In the 1960s, the star of Get Carter, The Italian Job and Alfie dressed as distinctively off-screen as he did on it. Here, we take trimly tailored tips from his wardrobe…
Words: Jonathan Wells
What’s your favourite piece of cinematic style from Sir Michael Caine? Because there are over seven decades of clothes and costumes to choose from. For us, it’s a three-way toss-up — between the navy-blue, belted macintosh he wears throughout Get Carter, the chunky ‘Thanksgiving cardigan’ from Hannah and Her Sisters and his blindingly bright white suit in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels. All seminal, enduring examples of Caine’s style.
But the actor’s wardrobe stretches beyond his screen roles. And, if you rifle a little deeper — and for a little longer — through the British icon’s garbs and garms, you’ll begin to notice patterns in his off-duty looks, too. Here, we’ve flicked through the publicity shots and press tours of Caine’s long and illustrious career to determine how you, too, can capture the cool of the man known as Harry Palmer, Charlie Croker, Alfie Cartwright and more…
Add some booting to your suiting
Though the sixties famously swung, Michael Caine was a reasonably strait-laced young actor. Although perhaps ‘strait-laced’ isn’t quite right — as, while his trim tailoring and double-breasted duds were undeniably sharp, Caine predominantly paired his smart suiting with boots. And these shoes were of a certain design; another mainstay of mid-century London fashion — the inimitable ‘Chelsea’ boots.
It’s a style that still works today. If you’re looking to step into Caine’s heel-clicking, slip-on shoes, why not look to a heritage shoemaker, such as Crockett & Jones or Edward Green, for inspiration? Alternatively, for a more modern spin on the style, Aurélien’s ‘City’ boots are Chelseas for the sneaker generation. But they’ll still do a handsome job when paired with some traditional tailoring, such as this Turnbull & Asser two-piece.
Caine’s favourite role was a roll-neck sweater
There was something a little bit ‘beatnik’ about Caine’s sixties style. With his thick-rimmed glasses and boots, the actor had the masculine manner of an intellectual — and nothing afforded Caine this air more confidently than his collection of roll-neck jumpers. There were two types hanging in Caine’s wardrobe; the most prevalent being the finely knitted, dark-toned roll-neck, often shrugged on beneath a suit or with smart trousers.
It was one of the British icon’s most enduring sixties looks — worn both off-set and on. But he also had a harder-wearing, bulkier spin on the same style. It was another outfit that made the step from his professional to his personal life; a chunky knit roll-neck jumper paired with a sturdy jacket.
Those iconic glasses came into the frame in 1965
Caine’s frames — the ‘Yvan’ from Curry & Paxton — cropped up in a number of famous film productions. But, whether you recognise them from 1965’s The IPCRESS File and its spying sequels, or The Italian Job — in which Caine slipped on a tinted spin on the style — the glasses set the standard for cool mid-century menswear.
Made from high-grade cellulose sourced from Italian acetate manufacturers Mazzucchelli, the modern-day ‘Yvan’ frames feature five-barrel hinges and genuine pin fastenings for maximum strength and durability. If you need prescription lenses, go for opticals. If not, seek out the style in sunglass-mode — or opt for a similarly chunky frame.
Learn the knotty art of woollen, off-duty dressing
While sixties Caine looked every tailored inch the gentleman when wearing a suit and tie, the actor truly excelled when he was left to dress in his off-duty duds. Press tours offered some particularly good examples of the actor’s personal style — such as this snap from the Cannes Film Festival, promoting 1966’s Alfie, where a bespectacled, bemused Caine sits (in a preppy sweatshirt) among a crowd of women.
It’s a penchant for fine, softer knits that has us revisiting those roll-necks above. But Caine’s eye for jumpers went beyond that single style — with the actor also zipping up cardigans, buttoning up woven blazers and slipping on sweatshirts, usually over button-collar shirts. So, if you want to follow Caine down this purled path, we’d recommend Aubin or Aurélien pieces, layered underneath an all-purpose jacket.
Want more wardrobe inspiration? Here’s how to dress like Sidney Poitier…
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