James Bond’s No Time to Die Massimo Alba ‘Rain 2 Duster Coat’ – Review

What I’ve found is that I’m not thinking what would look good with the Duster Coat. It’s more does this coat work with what I’ve thrown on that day, and for the most part it has.

– Article by Daniel Gaster.

Norway

Bond is seen wearing this Duster Coat in No Time to Die in Norway, with two different outfits.

The first, which I assume is Bond arriving to his Norway destination in the Aston Martin V8 Vantage.  He is wearing the Rain 2 Duster Coat with the Connolly x Finamore cotton/linen shirt, what looks like the Vuarnet Edge 1613 sunglasses, the Massimo Alba Mauko needlecord trousers in a washed black and the Crockett & Jones Molton boots.

The second (and most seen) outfit he has replaced the shirt with a Rag & Bone white classic Henley.

Divided

Over the months (that we’ve still not seen this film) I’ve seen lots of differing opinions on this coat. That’s fine, we all have them. One comment I received on a recent Instagram post was that it looked “like a mod era parka”, which I wasn’t sure how to take. I’ve also had comments that are quite positive as well. I’ve been in the camp that really liked the look of this coat as soon as I first saw it. I thought it looked good but was slightly uncertain about it.

When I watched David Zaritsky’s review of the coat on The Bond Experience YouTube channel (June 2020) I knew that I really did like this coat and thought that it would be worth a look at least.

This coat is not something I’d normally go for, being both a cord coat, and second in green. Except for my Barbour Commander Jacket in Olive, this is only my second green item of clothing. However, since purchasing the coat I’ve got a lot of wear from it in just a short amount of time.

I wore it a little in November, just after I received the coat and just before the cold hit, then started wearing it again during the Spring months and not really stopped. As with most people now working from home, my attire hasn’t been overly formal. So, when I’ve popped out to get something, gone out for a walk with my wife or gone to see family, I’ve gone out wearing this coat.

Options

I was nervous after ordering the Duster Coat, as I wasn’t sure that I’d like it on me or if it would go with anything else that I had. I wear this coat out with a lot of differing casual options, mostly with t-shirts and jeans. I’ve also layered it up with jumpers or cardigans and usually wear my Church’s Ryder 3 boots in dark brown suede or my Crockett & Jones Islay boots in dark brown leather.

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A full interview with Massimo Alba can be found in the book From Tailors With Love: An Evolution of Menswear Through the Bond Films.

What I’ve found is that I’m not thinking what would look good with the coat. It’s more does this coat work with what I’ve thrown on that day, and for the most part it has. My wardrobe is mostly block colours, so when I’m putting outfits together it makes it easier to match things with it. I wouldn’t wear this with anything overly smart, like over a suit for instance. In my mind this is very much a smart casual coat.

I also think this is a coat that suits the less urban environment, I wouldn’t for instance wear this around London. But as I live in the country, I think both the colouring and style sits well for me to wear here.

This isn’t a winter coat either, it is very thin, it has no lining to it. But I can wear a thicker jumper underneath, such as the No Time to Die N. Peal Army Jumper when it has been a little chillier in the spring and summer months.

Some details

The coat is single breasted, is unlined, has a 3-button fastening, belted cuffs, single vent, 2 slanted pockets and 2 internal pockets. From some pictures I’ve seen the original coat used in the film had a 4-button fastening, which was hidden under the lapel. Also referenced in David’s video is the outer pocket positioning and the size of the buttons on the cuffs.

When it arrived, it came via DHL and in a very simply wrapped in brown paper, the box is just a standard brown cardboard box with the Massimo Alba logo and a globe image, and inside the coat folded and wrapped in the same brown paper that the box was wrapped in.

Following the advice of David, I sized down and went for a 48. Even though the size guide said to go for the 50.

And I’m glad I trusted David.

The fit

The 48 fits me very well, a 50 would have swamped me, so thank you David! I’m around a 40-inch chest and I’m 6ft tall, which I think is important for the length of the coat. With my height this Duster Coat come to just under my kneecap which I think lands just about right.

The coat is extremely soft to the touch (or the hand as David would say). The needlecord which is used for all the Massimo Alba items (except for the Max 2 belt) does feel amazing to wear and very luxurious.

The downside to using this needlecord is that it does crease very easily. With my long coat I usually put them on a hat stand by the front door, which I did with this for a while. But then I notice the lapels creasing a little, so I’ve now put on a hanger when not used. I do need to press the lapels as they have sloped inward a little.

The other, despite its name, it really isn’t suitable for wet weather, in fact it has no waterproofing to it at all.

Verdict

I think you can tell by the way I’ve written this that I’m very happy with the coat. I’ve worn it quite often since the spring months started and in the now summer months when the weather hasn’t been as so summer and more like spring. I’ve continued to wear it.

I might not of purchased this item if it hadn’t been for Covid-19. As I’ve been working from home and not seeing my friends (until recently), I’ve not been spending money on petrol, in restaurant or in pubs.

It is a pricey item; I cannot dispute that. All the Massimo Alba items are. Buying items from different countries can worry people. I worried about it as well. Especially with additional costs for shipping and import taxes and Brexit has made things a little more difficult to get.

Knowing who to Trust

I recently purchased the Max 2 belt (still field testing). Following the sizing chart I still ended up with the wrong size. I got in in contact with Massimo Alba’s customer service, which was excellent! DHL came back the next day to my house to pick it up and returned to it to Italy at almost zero cost to me (had to go into town and pay to get the labels printed).

This provided me with reassurance, that if I make further purchases with Massimo Alba that if I didn’t like something or if it was the wrong size, then it can go back without any drama and at no additional cost to me. I feel that I will get a lot of wear with this Duster Coat in the years to come. From a quality and service perspective with Massimo Alba, these are both high and I feel that these are a trusted company to use in the future.

UPDATE NOV ’21

On the Blamo! Podcast Suttirat Ann Larlab referenced this and said, (loosely transcribed).

I wanted the clothes to kind of feel a little bit more grounded and that way, where it’s not just a shell that he puts on and then has to surpass or live up to but like, it really just feels like an extension of him personally […] There are certain Apex moments in the story where were revealed to the like, oh, yeah, that’s the Bond we know and love. Yeah. So all the moments surrounding those Apex moments have to be something else. And so then I would then look at, okay, what’s happening in the story? What’s the environment? How did he get that thing? How did he get that jacket?

UPDATE JULY 2022

In a video on The Bond Experience, the costume designer Suttirat Anne Larlab spoke about how the coat made it’s way into the film.

I always have a left field thing in a fitting. Daniel tried it on and loved it. Although there was really no place for it in the film. And then when that scene was written, and we just thought, oh, he just needs to grab something it can’t be too thought out. It’s just like the thing he grabs.

Further Reading & Resources

• With thanks to: Massimo Alba; James Bond Lifestyle; The Bond Experience
• Be sure to check out more reviews by Daniel Gaster. Follow Daniel on Instagram.
• Buy the Duster Rain 2 Jacket on the Massimo Alba site here.