No international super spy is better known than Mr. 007 himself, James Bond. Similarly famous are Bond’s watches, largely provided by Rolex and Omega, which have always been a central gadget in his crime-fighting repertoire. Villains need to tell time too, though – how else can you stay one step ahead of the best MI6 has to offer? Today we are taking a look at one of Bond’s best adversaries, Le Chiffre, and his wrist watch in the Longines Evidenza Chronograph.
About
James Bond is one of the biggest franchises in media today. It all started with Ian Fleming’s 1953 novel, Casino Royale, which introduced us to our mysterious hero as well as a host of beloved characters like CIA agent Felix Leiter, Vesper Lynd, and M. Fast forward to today, and no less than seven actors have donned 007’s getup across 27 total movies. The original Bond story has technically graced us twice on the silver screen, with the more modern version airing in 2006 with Daniel Craig playing Bond. Opposite Craig was Mads Mikkelsen, portraying terrorist financier and main antagonist Le Chiffre.
If you know anything about James Bond, you are aware that watches are a critical piece of his ensemble. The earliest of these timekeepers was Sean Connery’s Rolex Submariner ref. 6538. Roger Moore primarily wore Seiko, and Pierce Brosnan inked the start of the Omega era with a Seamaster Professional 300M. Daniel Craig continued that arrangement into his series of Bond movies – if you remember his “judge a book by its cover” scene with Vesper Lynd in Casino Royale, he not-so-subtly declares his horological allegiance after Vesper thinks Bond so predictable that Rolex is his horological weapon of choice. Bond sticks to the script throughout the movie, rotating across screens between a co-axial Seamaster Professional and a Seamaster Planet Ocean.
The focus of Casino Royale’s story is Bond’s pursuit of Le Chiffre, aptly translated in English to “The Number,” who is a private banker supporting global terrorism through his skill in manipulatively rigging the markets. We are quickly introduced to Le Chiffre as a man whose refinement clearly rivals James Bond, with well-pressed dark suits and a defined taste for luxury. This part of his character is on full display throughout the movie, but what is less clear until a few scenes into the Montenegro poker tournament is Le Chiffre’s watch. Unlike Bond, whose watches are prominently visible throughout Casino Royale, Le Chiffre’s choice is more understated. Eventually we get just enough of a glimpse to identify what it is: Le Chiffre is wearing a Longines Evidenza Chronograph, ref. L26564536.
If you aren’t especially familiar with the Evidenza, you would most certainly be forgiven for such a transgression; this is a bit of an understated pick by Casino Royale’s costume staff. The overall style is very elegant and fits the dress watch category; oversized Arabic numerals, a chronograph function, and an interesting tonneau-style case could have you mistaking this for something from a different maison’s catalogue. However, the major item that throws off the whole package for an otherwise well cast watch is its movement – this particular Evidenza is quartz! If you have read my previous posts, you might know that I am personally a quartz watch fan. Time and place are critical, however; quartz doesn’t really work in the context of Le Chiffre’s profile.
The answer to why the Evidenza was chosen lies within the consolidation of the Swiss watch industry. There are two major Swiss watch conglomerates we typically talk about: Richemont and Swatch Group. Swatch Group’s name might suggest they only deal in plastic toys, but the company actually owns a multitude of heavy hitter brands: this includes companies such as Omega, Breguet, Tissot, Hamilton, and, you guessed it, Longines. It makes sense from a marketing perspective that they would equip Bond’s foil with an inhouse brand, perhaps more undercover from a PR perspective, that simultaneously supports Swatch Group’s product placement while avoiding the association of Omega with criminal elements.
Passing Le Chiffre’s Vibe check
If you want to purchase a brand new Evidenza from Longines today, fear not – there are plenty of references available on their website. The specific chronograph that Le Chiffre wears, however, seems to have been phased out and now only exists on the secondary market. I think this affords us an opportunity to go shopping for Le Chiffre and pick more suitable options. While the Evidenza is certainly a fine watch, as mentioned above, I don’t think it ultimately holds up as an appropriate choice due to the quartz movement within. Let us take a very quick look at two illustrious options by brands owned by Richemont, Swatch Group’s main industry competitor.
My first pick, ignoring the obvious limitation of what watch references were available in 2006, is Cartier’s newly announced lacquered Santos Dumont collection for 2022. The Santos Dumont is one of Cartier’s most famous watches, and they’ve upped the ante this year by applying a hand-polished layer of lacquer to both the case and the dial. The dial itself also has a mesmerizing concentric cubic layout that really pops despite the watch’s monotone color palette. What you see below in the photo is Cartier’s steel option; there is also a platinum and rose gold option, but they don’t embody the platonic ideal of a black-tie watch in the way that the steel variant does. This watch should be released in late fall 2022; our pick comes with a price tag of €5,100.
My second choice (although by no means lesser) is from Jaeger Le-Coultre, the “watchmaker’s watchmaker.” If you are familiar with JLC, you might know about the Reverso, which was originally designed in the 1930s with a reversible case to protect against damage while engaging in physical activity. My specific choice is the Reverso Tribute Duoface Small Seconds, which means there is actually a second, well-crafted watch dial when you flip the case over. Despite its original design intent, this manual-winding watch has developed into the quintessential dress watch of the modern era. The Reverso Tribute comes in multiple colors, but I think the midnight blue dial best fits the role we are trying to re-cast. The Tribute Duoface starts at $11,400.
There are a multitude of great dress watches out there for consideration, but I specifically think these two options would have been ideal additions to Le Chiffre’s wardrobe in Casino Royale. On the off chance that you, too, would like to look sharp for evening outings (minus the mishaps with government intelligence services and black market arms deals), I think these can make for killer editions to your wardrobe as well. Ciao, watch nerds.
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