Vitals

Matt Damon as Jason Bourne/David Webb, amnesiac ex-CIA assassin on the run

Everywhere (London, Madrid, Tangier, New York City), early 2004

Film: The Bourne Ultimatum
Release Date: August 3, 2007
Director: Paul Greengrass
Costume Designer: Shay Cunliffe

Background

After kicking a substantial amount of ass across a few continents, David Webb still isn’t taking it easy by the time The Bourne Ultimatum rolls around. As usual, he is paired up with a Bad Boy Super Assassin and defeats him with the usual weapons of a book and a bath towel and still manages to do it all without cracking a single smile.

What’d He Wear?

After the prologue, which explains Bourne’s escape from Moscow in The Bourne Supremacy, we find Bourne in London, sporting a twist on his usual look. It’s all still dark-colored and solid, but this new ensemble allows for greater mobility.

Gone is the long greatcoat, a staple of the Bourne series since he first returned to Paris in The Bourne Identity. Gone too are the thick sweaters worn underneath to battle the bitter cold of Russia.

Instead, Bourne’s primary jacket throughout The Bourne Ultimatum is a black motorcycle jacket that extends to just below his waist. It is a simple blouson-style coat with a zip-fastening front, two deep slash side pockets, a soft standing collar, and plain sleeves. The waistband is fitted, but Bourne typically wears the jacket open. It appears to be made of a heavyweight cotton or canvas and has a removable inner lining.

There was an Internet rumor that the jacket was manufactured by Belstaff, but it seems that this is not true. Supposedly, about thirty versions of the jacket were made by the film’s costume department with Matt Damon’s input. Some were made with lining (likely for the colder London and New York scenes) and some made without (for the warmer Morocco scenes).

Bourne layers up underneath the jacket using colors not unfamiliar to him. The bottom layer, worn during the entirety of the film, is a solid blue T-shirt with a thick vertical rib. The shirt is short-sleeve which comes in handy when Bourne is sprinting through a toasty Middle Eastern city while being hunted down by policemen and a professional government assassin.

Over the T-shirt, Bourne selects a black ribbed sweater for his action scenes in the colder cities: London, Madrid, and New York. The sweater fits the Bourne mold: simple, crew neck, and comfortably-sized. I have encountered two different potential manufacturers for this sweater: Issey Miyake or Reiss. As he wears one in the first part of the film in Europe and another in New York during the climax, it’s possible that one maker was used for the European scenes and another for the New York scenes. Supposedly, the Issey Miyake sweater was worn inside out to keep it from looking too fashionable.

Other items I’ve encountered as being used in the film were an American Apparel hoodie, a River Island leather jacket, and a French Connection (FCUK) bomber jacket. The hoodie was probably worn during the flashback scenes to Bourne’s training at the New York facility, but if anyone has any information about the two jackets, it would be appreciated.

Bourne’s jeans are a pair of black Levi’s 501s, worn beltless, with a silver button. He carries his SIG Pro pistol in the waistband of these jeans, shoved in the front above the fly.

Bourne switches his Timberland Euro Hiker boots from the first two films to a pair of all-black leather Tommy Hilfiger all-terrain hiking boots with seven sets of eyelets, split with two above a notched section, as illustrated in this series of posts on The RPF. He wears high black socks in his boots.

On his wrist is Bourne’s old reliable Tag Heuer Link Quartz Chronograph on a stainless bracelet and round bezel with a black face. As usual, no other accessories. Can’t really imagine Jason Bourne wearing a pinky ring or anything like that.

How dedicated are you to adopting Bourne’s style? It appears that Bourne is really sold on the whole only-wearing-black-and-blue thing; when riding his bike through Tangiers, we get glimpse of his underwear: Light blue boxer briefs with a white logo across the white band! I’m not sure what you will do with this knowledge, but it was my honor tracking it down for you.

Go Big or Go Home

In this installment, Bourne goes big and goes home, literally! (Insert laugh track here.)

Seriously though, this is the one that brings Bourne back to his roots at the New York training facility. He does the most globe-hopping in this one, from Moscow to London to Madrid to Tangier to New York City. Bourne isn’t much of a tourist, but he does make a stop in Tangier at the Café de Paris, a nod to Tangier’s history in the world of espionage. During Tangier’s years as an international city, many spies and agents would often meet up at the Café de Paris. Think of it as a real life Rick’s Café American from Casablanca.

The Gun

You may recall that, in The Bourne Identity, Bourne had a SIG Pro SP2009 (a 9 mm SIG-Sauer pistol) in his safety deposit box at the bank. In keeping with the tradition of his Euro Hikers, Bourne upgraded in Ultimatum to a SIG Pro SP2022, the newer – back then – entry in the SIG-Sauer Pro series.

Like the SP2009, the SP2022 carries 15 rounds of 9×19 mm Parabellum ammunition in its magazine, weighs just over 25 ounces, and can be easily concealed with a barrel length under 4 inches. The SP2022, however, has an integral Picatinny rail for accessories and can be utilized with a suppressor on a threaded barrel.

The SP2022 was approved for service with French police forces, including the Gendarmerie, in 2002. Its name – the SP2022 – was determined from the pistol’s estimated service life of twenty years.

Bourne carries the SP2002 all through The Bourne Ultimatum, having picked one up from a fallen CIA agent in Madrid and somehow obtaining another in the United States. Bourne also carries a Glock 17 and a Beretta 92FS as various points in the film, but the SIG Pro is the most prominently featured.

How to Get the Look

At its most basic, you likely already own all of these items, or at least 80% of them. Unless your house has recently burned down taking all of your worldly possessions with it, you should have a dark jacket, dark jeans, and a blue T-shirt. (If your house has recently burned down, my apologies and I will happily send you a blue T-shirt.)

• Black canvas zip-up blouson jacket with two deep open slash hip pockets
• Blue ribbed short-sleeve H&M t-shirt
• Black ribbed crew neck Issey Miyake sweater, worn inside out
• Black denim Levi’s 501 jeans
• Black Tommy Hilfiger lace-up hiking boots
• Black socks
• Light blue boxer briefs with a black band and a white logo
• TAG Heuer Link Quartz Chronograph CT1111.BA0550 wristwatch with a stainless bracelet and black dial

Do Yourself a Favor and…

Check out the movie.

The Quotes

Do you even know why you’re supposed to kill me? Look at us. Look at what they make you give.

Footnotes