Rusty’s Gray Silk Suit in Ocean’s Twelve
Brad Pitt as “Rusty” Ryan in Ocean’s Twelve (2004).
Vitals
Brad Pitt as Robert “Rusty” Ryan, hotel owner and international thief
Los Angeles and Rome, November 2004
Film: Ocean’s Twelve
Release Date: December 10, 2004
Director: Steven Soderbergh
Costume Designer: Milena Canonero
Pitt’s Costumer: Bruno de Santa
Background
Today’s installment of “Hey, I actually kinda enjoyed that movie!” features the Euro-flavored meat in Steven Soderbergh’s Ocean’s trilogy sandwich, Ocean’s Twelve. This blockbuster brought the whole gang back together again, adding nemeses on both sides of the law in the form of Catherine Zeta-Jones and Vincent Cassel.
After the theft of more than $160 million from his Vegas casino years earlier, ruthless mogul Terry Benedict (Andy Garcia) has spent plenty of time tracking down each team member of “Ocean’s Eleven”… a moniker that several of the team dispute. The last to be tracked down is Rusty Ryan, Danny Ocean’s smooth right hand whom we learn was actually considered the de facto leader by many of the group itself. Three and a half years after abandoning his girlfriend (CZJ) in Rome, Rusty is managing his own L.A. hotel and babysitting the washed-up Hollywood stars who bed down in it: “Jeez, Topher, you didn’t have to go all Frankie Muniz on me.”
Rusty is in the middle of the hedonistic Topher Grace situation when he gets that call from Benedict: “The last time we talked, you hung up on me.” Immediately realizing the significance of this greeting, Rusty gets into Neil McCauley mode as soon as he feels the heat. “You used nasty words,” Rusty responds, reverting to his cool persona and feeling comfort in the knowledge that Benedict isn’t able to see him desperately scrambling out of the building to his car(s). Of course, Rusty starts feeling the literal heat once Benedict triggers a bomb that detonates his favorite car, a ’63 Ford Falcon Futura convertible. Point taken.
What’d He Wear?
Ocean’s Twelve received plenty of criticism after its release, but there’s no denying that the music and suits are just cool, particularly the vestments sported by Brad Pitt’s Rusty Ryan. Milena Canonero was the costume designer on Ocean’s Twelve, and Bruno de Santa is credited as being Pitt’s specific costumer.
Canonero stated in an interview that “Rusty is more vain and more into his clothes. I used lots of satins and shiny material to give a shimmer and slickness to his look, just like lightning,” and explained that all of the characters would dress apropos their personalities three years after obtaining their millions in the first movie.
Even in a jail cell, Rusty shines like a million bucks. (Although that could just be the effect of wearing an Italian suit in an Italian jail…)
For his first scene on screen as well as several scenes later on when the gang is in Rome, Rusty wears a fashionable light gray two-piece suit that appears to be a lightweight silk and wool blend based on the way the suit shines in certain light.
The single-breasted suit jacket has edge-stitched notch lapels with a buttonhole through the left lapel. Both the two buttons on the front and the four buttons on each cuff are light gray plastic. The shoulders are straight with roped sleeveheads, and the long double vents rise to just above the hip pocket line.
Rusty faces off against a litany of villains in Ocean’s Twelve, from the Italian authorities to Topher Grace himself.
Interestingly, the hip pockets are welted rather than jetted or flapped. The breast pocket is also welted. As Rusty makes his desperate exit from the Standard Hotel, we also get a look inside the jacket and see that there are three inside pockets on the left – an upper pocket, a pen pocket, and a lower pocket. There is one inner breast pocket on the right just above the black logo patch.
Rusty’s aborted great escape.
The low rise trousers have single reverse pleats, straight on-seam side pockets, jetted button-through back pockets, and plain-hemmed bottoms with a full break. Rusty wears a distinctive tan belt with dark brown accents and a gunmetal rectangular buckle.
Even in one of the most fashionable cities in the world, Rusty manages to stand out.
We get a glimpse of Rusty’s workday attire when we first see him, wearing this suit with a silver silk shirt and tie. The dark silver shirt is one of the satin items that Canonero mentioned. It has a large point collar, breast pocket, and button cuffs.
Rusty’s tie is a much lighter shade of gray with thin diagonal tonal stripes running right-down-to-left. He wears it in a loose four-in-hand-knot that hangs down below the unfastened top button of the shirt.
Nonplussed.
Rusty dresses down the same suit several scenes later when the gang is in Rome, planning their Fabergé egg heist. Rather than a dress shirt and tie, he wears an ivory gray short-sleeve polo shirt constructed from soft, luxurious knit silk. This fashion-forward shirt has a shallow v-neck rather than buttons. There is a patch pocket on the left breast.
The light silver satin shirt that Rusty wears for “day of” in Rome is similar to the L.A. dress shirt with its satin silk finish, large point collar and front placket. He leaves both the top two white buttons and the buttons on the rounded cuffs undone, although he keeps the gauntlet buttons fastened so the sleeves don’t flop around when he has his jacket off. This shirt has no pocket.
Rusty allows himself a satisfied smirk after pulling off the heist and riding off in a private jet with Catherine Zeta-Jones.
With a suit like this, you wouldn’t expect Rusty to wear a regular old pair of brown oxfords, would you? Instead, he wears a pair of very distinctive tan alligator full strap penny loafers with a pointed square bicycle toe. The soles are dark brown hard leather.
Although the full break of the trouser bottoms often conceals them, Rusty’s dress socks are appropriately light gray to continue the leg line into his shoes.
Rusty’s distinctive loafers are seen while enjoying various degrees of freedom in Rome.
Rusty isn’t one to shy away from accessories, one of the few non-mobsters on BAMF Style that can rock a necklace, ring (or multiple rings!), sunglasses, and watch. Of course, it helps that they’re all boutique items.
Brad Pitt is a well-known Oliver Peoples ambassador, but his eyewear of choice in Ocean’s Twelve has been identified as a pair of Diesel Cobretti sunglasses with “shiny light gold” (oM12) metal frames and brown gradient lenses (DD). The two-tone brown arms are tan in the front and brown for the back portion that rest behind his ears. Although discontinued, Diesel Cobretti sunglasses can still be found at some online retailer sites.
Cool under fire… and under arrest.
Rusty’s watch is clearly a silver-colored Rolex on a President link bracelet, and some discussion at the Rolex forums evidently deduced that his exact model was a platinum Rolex Day-Date 118366 with a “glacier” ice blue dial, 36mm case, and 24 baguette diamonds on the bezel. If you want your own, you can find one online for about, oh, $58,000.
On Rusty’s right pinky, he wears a silver ring with a flush square diamond.
Rusty enjoys a well-deserved martini on the rocks.
Although their union wasn’t long for this world at the time of Ocean’s Twelve‘s release, Brad Pitt wears a thin silver necklace with a down-scaled replica of his wedding ring from his marriage to Jennifer Aniston. The necklace perfectly follows the shallow V-neck line of the polo shirt that he wears in Rome.
How to Get the Look
Although some of the rest of Ocean’s crew are flamboyant dressers, especially after obtaining their newfound wealth from the first movie, only Rusty manages to consistently balance flashiness with a fashion sense.
- Light gray silk two-piece suit, consisting of:
- Single-breasted 2-button jacket with notch lapels, welted breast pocket, welted hip pockets, 4-button cuffs, double vents
- Single reverse-pleated trousers with belt loops, straight on-seam side pockets, jetted back pockets, and plain-hemmed bottoms
- Silver satin silk dress shirt with large collar, front placket, and rounded button cuffs
- Light silver diagonal tonal-striped silk necktie
- Tan alligator bicycle toe full strap penny loafers
- Light gray dress socks
- Diesel Cobretti sunglasses with gold metal frames, brown gradient lenses, and two-tone brown arms
- Silver thin-chain necklace with wedding ring replica pendant
- Rolex “President” Day-Date 118366 platinum wristwatch with 36mm case, ice blue dial, diamond-studded bezel, and President-style link bracelet
- White gold or platinum Rolex Day-Date wristwatch on link bracelet
- Silver pinky ring with flush square diamond
For more of a cool, casual take, lose the tie or even swap out the whole shirt for a casual ivory short-sleeve polo.
Do Yourself a Favor and…
Check out the movie. If you can’t bring yourself to just get the least beloved of the pack, check out the whole trilogy.
The Quote
I thought I’d be dead before I heard the sound that killed me.
Been looking for it forever, what kind of suit, particularly the jacket does Pitt wear as Rusty Ryan in his first scene when he’s teaching poker to celebrities?
IMO it was one of the most unique styles of suit I’ve encountered.