Working Titles takes a closer look at specific films with a denim and workwear aesthetic with the goal of examining the material’s shifting cultural image.

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“The family crest is a sheepdog pissing into a gondola.”

What. A. Line. Honestly, I had no idea how to open this piece, so I thought to myself, why not kick it off with my favourite line from the movie? Honestly, I think it sets the tone just right.

Sheepdogs and gondolas aside, right off the bat, I need to clear the air. I’d like to make it known that Serpico was in fact my first Al Pacino movie. Queue the gasps and raised eyebrows. Yes, I have been living under a rock. And yes, if you put two and two together, that means I haven’t seen Scarface or The Godfather. Maybe we’ll cover those next; who knows? 

But, for now, let’s focus on the gritty, intense police thriller that is Serpico. Set in the heart of New York in the 60s, Frank (or Paco) Serpico – played by the prodigious Al Pacino – is a dewy-eyed, idealistic cop hoping to rid The Big Apple’s streets of crime, one criminal at a time. His intentions are cut short when he realizes that almost the entire force, aka his colleagues, are corrupt; willing to take bribes to look the other way. After blowing the whistle and having to deal with the real possibility of being whacked at any second, Serpico has to figure out how to bring justice to a very unjust situation. 

Again, I’d like to point out that I’m no film critic; however, I am going to give my opinion on the movie. In short, it’s brilliant. Al Pacino himself and his performance really stand out. And I’m not just saying that because every other character of note is an older white male with no distinct physical features – I got confused numerous times. Pacino’s performance was totally believable. When he was frustrated, I felt frustrated. When he was happy, I felt happy. I became invested pretty quick. Well worth the watch. 

But the Pacino performance isn’t the only thing I care about. We’re here to talk about the style. Typically I like to try and tie styles to a particular theme, whether it’s Americana, ivy, whatever. Pacino’s style in Serpico is impossible to put into a box. From cowboy-inspired vests and festival-style bucket hats to traditional African dress-inspired shirts and military wear, the film’s got it all. Let’s try to unpick it a little bit. 

Rookie Serpico

Skipping over the first scene that features bellowing police sirens and a dying Serpico in the backseat of a cop car, we kick off with a fresh-faced Paco graduating from the police academy. You know when you go to a new school or a new job and you rock up with every single piece of uniform and a polished name badge? That’s the vibe here. Trust up trench coats, shirts tucked into pants, polished shoes, no facial hair, the works. Pristine and green, just like a new graduate’s supposed to be. I’m not bashing the style, it’s just not for me. If I’m wearing a trench, I like it a little more relaxed. I guess Serpico was under the impression he’d be joining a clean force. So, so wrong. 

Evolution Begins

As he gets to know the ropes, Serpico starts to cotton on that something’s not quite right with the force. And I’m not talking about Star Wars here; I’m talking about bribery. With this realization, Serpico’s style starts to evolve slightly; for the better, may I add — we start to see some personality. Now, I absolutely love a chambray shirt. In fact, I think it’s an underappreciated fabric. So when I saw Serpico in one, I knew I was in for a treat. What I love most is the uneven, ripped sleeves that add such a sense of nonchalance to the entire look. Hard to pull off but it looks great when done correctly. 

The funny thing about this movie is that you can judge how far in time the film has jumped in the narrative by the state of Serpico’s facial hair. Relatively soon into his policing career, Paco gets a transfer to the plainclothes division of the NYPD, and with that, grows one hell of a ‘stache. This is where it starts to get interesting and where Serpico’s costume designer, the late Anna Hill Johnstone, starts to get a bit spicy with the fits.

There’s a pretty classic scene that involves Serpico, his first love interest, and a now-vintage motorcycle. Serpico is wearing what looks to be a navy mac, red polo, brown bootcut trousers, and some engineer boots. Man, what a fit. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, when pulling off a fit like this, a lot of it comes down to the attitude that accompanies it. In my opinion, anyone can pull off a fit if they have the attitude to match. Serpico is a little more jaded, here, having realized what he’s got himself into with all the corruption and bribery, so naturally, the shirt is untucked, the mac is a little tatty, and the boots are dusty. But it works. 

Kicking it up a notch is an undercover arrest scene that sees Serpico wearing a chore jacket and hickory-stripe dungarees with a wide-collared chambray shirt layered underneath. Now, I struggle with layering. I don’t get much farther than a jacket over a plain tee. But to mix denim with denim and then slap some hickory-stripe dungarees on topic, goodness gracious me. 

An explosive scene that perfectly captures the mood, narrative, and attitude of the film is embedded below. Serpico returns to the cop shop to find a local mobster he had arrested and let out of custody by his colleagues, whilst joking around and smoking with them. Whilst the criminal whistles away after Serpcio enters the room causing an awkward, deafening silence, Serpico orders him over to empty is pockets, and, well…. just watch the video. Turns out I chose a pretty good film to see my first Pacino meltdown,

Final Form

We get to a point in the movie where Serpico just isn’t getting anywhere with reporting the bribery and corruption to his superiors. In fact, most of his higher-ups are in on it. Everything is getting out of control: his superiors, his love interests, and his damn facial hair. We’re in full beard mode, people, and with that comes even wilder garm choices. 

Here, Serpico reaches his final form – over 9,000 and then some. It’s literally like he rocked up at Woodstock ‘69 one day, hit acid for the first time, tripped balls, and emerged from the other side as ‘leader of the hippies’. If this movie was shot today, he’d be dressed head to toe in Kapital; I guarantee it. It’s bucket hats, tie-dyed tees, loose pants, pirate-esque earrings-galore. Almost like an urban jack sparrow, and I’m diggin’ it. Speaking of which, there’s one particular item of clothing that Serpico rocks like no man I’ve ever seen. The vest. There’s a bunch of them throughout, so perhaps it was fashionable to wear a vest at that particular point in time, but the variation in fabric and detailing is outrageous. From RRL-esque western cowboy vests that wouldn’t look out of place in classics like Cool Hand Luke to jacquard woven waistcoats; the man wears it all. Amazingly, it all looks good, too. 

From there on out, his style changes drastically on the daily. Some days he looks like he should be on the New York streets with a peacoat and watch cap, other times he should be in Alaska hunting deer with a buffalo plaid Filson cap and a Warehouse & Co., flannel.

Military and Naval Jacket Perfection

In the final scenes of the movie, we see Paco rockin’ two of the most iconic military jackets around – the M65 field jacket and the navy-style peacoat. Now, the M65 — a jacket that has been re-produced numerous times by Japanese brands like Iron Heart and The Real MCoy’s —was first issued in 1965 during the Vietnam war. Given Serpico came out in the early 70s, and the war ended in 1975, it’s likely that Serpico is wearing an original M65 issued by the US military. His field jacket is perfectly softened and worn-in, with the big, bellowing sleeves matching his equally sizeable hair and beard.

Now, onto the peacoat. The peacoat is actually one of my favorite coats ever. There’s something about the slightly longer look and large lapels that give it such an edgy yet formal look. The way Serpico rocks it with a chambray shirt underneath and a watch cap just reeks of rugged refinement, all informed by staple USN garments that work so well in the civilian wardrobe.

Get the Serpico look

I think sometimes I try too hard to stick to a single style. I want to be known as the cool Americana guy, or the workwear bro. Problem is, I love aspects of every style. I like workwear pants paired with an ivy shirt and an Americana jacket thrown on top. Serpico mixes a bunch of styles in this movie, and I didn’t once think it looked remotely out of place.  I need to take a leaf out of his book the next time I’m thinking about stepping outside the lines of a particular style convention. Way to go, Paco.

If you haven’t seen the film, get to watchin’ because there are levels of style, inspiration, and nuance that are difficult to put into words.

M-65 Field Jacket

Jelado Pueblo Vest

UES Heavy Flannel Shirt

Overalls – Stan Ray Earl’s Bib

Buzz Rickson’s BR14425 Pea-Coat Jungle Cloth

Clinch Engineer Boots CN Last Black Latigo

Gallery