As the 22nd Bond film to be released, Olga Kurylenko stole the role as Bond’s leading lady. While it’s no hidden fact that she’s just one in a long line of beautiful women courted by the maverick power that is Bond, her minimalist style sure as hell earned her title and made a lasting impression for her role of Camille Montes in 2008’s Quantum of Solace.
Quantum of Solace required a dress fitting to Camille’s vengeful character – a subtle and sexy number complimentary to her disguised lust for revenge. With these limitations in mind, it was up to costume designer Louise Frogley, and fashion house Prada to design a thigh-flashing masterpiece.
“We dressed both the girls in Prada for the party scene. It is not like we did a deal with Prada, it just worked out that way. The dresses were very simple but elegant and they were just perfect for the characters and the look I was going for.“
Simple and elegant, the minimalist design and mysterious black of the outfit emphasises Camille’s effortless Latina beauty, and disguises her hidden motive for the desire for glamour and working the social circuits – a deep revenge for the murder of her family. Emerging from the desert in the final moments of the film, you wouldn’t be alone in forgetting how her Prada dress used to look in earlier scenes of the film.
Only a Bond production could take a beautiful dress, wear it through bullets, fire and flames, and absolutely destroy it to the end. Needing a costume for Camille that could withstand the durability of the stunts required of a Bond character, Frogley designed the dresses with this in mind. “I realized we were designing the costume to fit the stunts and it seemed to me we were putting the cart before the horse. People took it for granted that it had to be a certain way but when we actually looked at it carefully we questioned why we were designing a trouser suit with arms for a glamorous party set in a hot country – it didn’t make sense. So in the end, Camille goes to the party in a fantastic black Prada dress, NOT a trouser suit!“
“I wanted the Bond girls snappy and slightly ’60s, to harmonize with Bond. Prada had the best possible looks so I used them. Muicca Prada was incredibly helpful and made 20 identical dresses for us in one week.” says Louise Frogley. If you want to get your hands on it though, expect a hefty price tag. If you manage to find a version of the dress not in the confines of a museum, you’ll be asked to cough up around £7,00 for the privilege of owning Camille’s dress.
There’s nothing aged about Camille’s sweetheart off the shoulder design – except the scorch marks of course. The length of the dress, reaching just past the knee, was a demure choice for a Bond sex symbol. However, it’s figure hugging style which cinches in at the waist rescues it from being too safe. The final slashing of the fabric to right up to Camille’s thigh – a perfect tear for an ‘accident’, we must say – completes the ensemble. Not forgetting the Gina Paris shoes in hand.
Simply does it!
