The 80s Miami Vice look is back – here’s how to do it in 2024
There are certain defining moments that act as bellwethers of how the fashion winds have changed over the decades. Mary Quant’s miniskirts in Swinging Sixties London is one of them, Dior’s scandalously fulsome New Look in post-war Paris another. And in the world of men’s fashion, the quirky stylings of 1980s show Miami Vice became another: a symbol of that era’s approach to men’s dressing that’s become a hallmark.
The show, which celebrates its 40th anniversary this year, featured two vice cops as they go about their business against the lapping waters of South Beach and Ocean Drive, and is so brilliantly of a moment; luxury condos that spoke to the glorious 1980s excess, chunky watches, even chunkier cell phones and those clothes.
Say Miami Vice and an image is conjured of the suits worn by main characters James “Sonny” Crockett and Ricardo Tubbs, sleeves rolled up to the elbows and lighter than the meringue on a key lime pie, and those pastel hues, the ice-cream shades of which – candyfloss, mint, buttercup – perfectly aligned with the art-deco facades of Ocean Drive in the background. Yes, it was all rather silly and camp, but Miami Vice defined a generation of men’s style.
“It marked a real turning point towards relaxed men’s tailoring,” says stylist Grace Gilfeather. “Dropping the formality of a shirt and tie and opting for a T-shirt to complete a suit, which was fairly modern for the time. It’s the simplicity and cleanness of it that’s so appealing and still contemporary for today. It’s confident, effortless, comfortable – and those colours are so optimistic.”
Of course, it helps if you have the bouffant locks of Don Johnson, and the luscious backdrop of those tangerine-tinged Floridian skies, but there was something unique in how the costume designer Jodie Tillen dressed the leads that hadn’t been done before.
“It changed the way men dressed in the world, it gave men permission to wear pastels,” she recently told The Hollywood Reporter. This was the era of Gordon Gekko and the “Greed is Good” mentality, but what translated as signifiers of a “successful man” on the grey old streets of the city and in the steel towers of Manhattan wasn’t right for that easygoing – if heavily fictionalised – version of Miami. So out went the structured tailoring and shirts in favour of deliciously light linen suits in blousy shapes worn with breezy cotton T-shirts or open collar shirting.
All the elements which made a man “smart” back in that era were so very heavy – the gel-laden hair, the suit, perhaps with waistcoat, complete with shirt, tie, pocket squares, clomping, structured Oxfords – that this fresh interpretation of men’s style as easy, loose yet still pretty damn immaculate was a cool drink of lemonade compared to what else was on offer. It helped that the show’s producer Michael Mann and Tillen were fixated on the aesthetics of each frame. “We had a colour palette: no earth tones, no primary, all pastel. Each car colour, every wall that the actors walked in front of, was [that colour] by design”, she said. It helps that the changing winds of men’s fashion meant that softer, more unstructured shapes were becoming more prevalent.
Giorgio Armani was at the forefront of this, ushering in a new era of ease for men with his fluid cut of tailoring, although Armani didn’t feature in the show initially – designers of that particular era such as Adolfo Dominguez and Cerruti featured instead. But Armani’s influence was evident in the light fabrics and easier shapes – the costume designer deliberately bought suits in larger sizes to make them baggier on actors Don Johnson and Philip Michael Thomas.
Miami as a locale has had pivotal moments in fashion over the years, a world apart from the cold, steely glossiness of Manhattan or the shiny logomania of Los Angeles. The 1990s hubbub of South Beach was also enormously influential in fashion; Gianni Versace had made it his US epicentre and his richly patterned silk shirts and more-is-more aesthetic – as well as his Bruce Weber ad campaigns depicting male body beautiful – became a calling card of Miami style. See the effect in the excellent 1996 film The Birdcage, a modern rendering of La Cage Aux Folles, starring Robin Williams and Nathan Lane in a fabulous flurry of Versace silks – it was the zenith of that era, before Versace was tragically gunned down on the steps of his South Beach mansion a year later.
Back to Miami Vice and the look still feels relevant today, though of course you don’t have to go the whole Eighties kitsch – there are relatable ways to infuse a palm-fronted hint of Floridian flair to your wardrobe.
Take the shapes for starters; deconstructed suits in lightweight linens are always going to be a winner in warmer climes, particularly in looser sizes. The “sunshine suit” has been part of red carpet styling for a while now – simply a suit in a cheerful pastel shade – but if you’re dissuaded, stick to light, neutral tones and offset them with a soft mint or pink T-shirt. “Loose fitting, linen trousers with well worn suede loafers will work well,” says Gilfeather. “Lose the socks, and for a more modern interpretation a vest can look great under a blazer. It’s a light hearted, elegant look.”
On that note, Miami Vice – and Mr Armani on the Milanese side – was an early champion of the easy, breezy T-shirt or open-necked shirt with a suit, a far more welcome proposal in warmer climes and less fusty and done up than a formal shirt with tie. See also the espadrilles and loafers worn sans-socks, a far more sleek and breathable footwear option as the sky streaks coral over the Biscayne Bay. Even if your outlook is more Basingstoke, it’s worth keeping in mind.
Get the look...
Cotton linen blazer, ￡175, Gant
Cotton T-shirt, ￡90, Sunspel
Chinos, ￡109, Mr Marvis
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Espadrilles, ￡25.99, Zara
