One of the best things about classic menswear’s storied history is that as trends and aesthetics come and go, we can find the root of the look in the past. This is especially helpful when it comes to analyzing the menswear in movies. Films are constantly inspired by films from the past, be it through the score, specific scenes (a breakfast letter reading scene in Megalopolis is taken straight from The Red Shoes), or a character’s outfit.

This plays directly into this month’s “theme” of sorts, which has all been about the menswear found in Indiana Jones. When you look into the history of Indy’s iconic look, consisting of military-esque shirts and pants, Alden boots, an A-2 inspired jacket, and beat up brown fedora, you will no doubt be pointed toward Charlton Heston in Secret of the Incas.  Interviews with Spielberg and even Deborah Nadoolman all cite this movie as the inspiration behind Indy’s attire as well as Raiders in general!  I remember reading on TheRaider.net about how rare it was to watch; I never thought I’d be able to see it. Of course now the film is fully available on Youtube in 1080p. 

And so since we were doing this mini series on Indy, the guys and I decided to make it our bonus episode this month. It seemed like a fun idea to come full circle and end by checking out the root inspo behind one of our favorite movies of all time. 

We were wrong.

Secret of the Incas is a fucking drag of a movie. For a movie that is meant to be the progenitor to Raiders, this film lacks the excitement, heart, and most importantly, the sense of adventure that is found across all of the Indiana Jones films. 

The film follows Harry Steele, played by Charlton Heston, who isn’t an archaeologist but an American living in Peru. Wikipedia calls him an adventurer but at most, he’s a con-artist, making a living by tricking American tourists into thinking he’s their guide and paying him accordingly. What’s more is that he actually does it, so he’s really not a scoundrel at all. He’s just a little callous and forward without any semblance of charm.

The plot kicks off when we find out that he and his “friend” Morgan are searching for the Sunburst, a golden relic from the Incas that is rumored to be somewhere in Machu Picchu. Steele has a piece of the stone map showing where the tomb is but he has no way to get there. Enter Elena, a woman defecting from Romania and trying to get to America; she’s pursued by Anton, a Romanian official tasked with bringing her home. Steele offers to help her out and steal Anton’s plane to fly her to Mexico…only to land in Machu Picchu. To their surprise, there is an archeological team already on site looking for the ancient Sunburst to return to the native people. Steele has to decide how he’s gonna get his prize, all the while avoiding suspicion from the archaeologists as well as Morgan, who has also shown up at the camp ready to take the treasure.

I feel like I’ve made it sound cooler than it is.

In execution, the movie is all just talking with contrived plot points and a few plot holes. There is no real action in the movie unless you count the two curb-stomp ass kickings that Harry does to his “assassin” and Morgan. The “secret of the Incas” turns out to be that the Sunburst is simply a stone carving…until we later learn that we have to use mirrors and light to discover its true resting place— in the wall across the room. That’s really it. 

The only saving grace of this flick is that it seems to be film on location in Peru and features a lot of local people as extras both in the Cusco scenes as well as the ones at Machu Picchu. All the dialogue from the archaeologists show that they are doing the excavation to return the Sunburst to its rightful owners. Perhaps this is what Spielberg and Lucas expanded on in their verison in order to ensure Indy isn’t just an unlikeable grave robber. Oh, and there’s also a lot of scenes with Yma Sumac singing, which is cool but feels a little out of place in this movie.

If anything, Raiders is just a better version of whatever the hell Secret of The Incas was.

Of course, it’s nice to see where Spielberg, Lucas, and costume designer Deborah Nadoolman got their cues for Indy’s look. It’s a straight up 80s ripoff of Harry Steele.

Harry Steele wears an A-2 leather jacket, though unlike Indy’s it looks to be closer to the real deal; it also seems to have had a placement for a name tag as well as a faded painted stencil of some kind of military division or group. We do see that Steele knows how to fly a plane, but whether this jacket points to a military past or the fact that he stole it from someone passing through remains to be seen. This is worn over a nice slim 50s tee shirt and an aviator style scarf, though less voluminous and shorter and seems to be made from some printed fabric. This is certainly a contrast to Indy’s use of a full button up shirt.

Steele’s nod to the military continues with his trousers, which are proper officers’ pinks cut high and flat front like the real deal. Perhaps he really is some sort of deserter! These pants are bloused into boots, effecting a bit of a paratrooper meets safari vibe, which is simply practical to keep his trouser hems from becoming dirty or torn from walking around Peru. 

Of course the real Indy future-nod comes through Harry’s hat. It’s definitely huge, being larger and wider than any of the other fedoras we see in the film (and there’s at least five). Maybe this is why the Raiders fedora is so big compared to the ones Indy wears in the other films; Spielberg & Co. wanted the Inca effect. Both hats have quite a big swoop and angle in their geometries. 

However, it’s important to note that Steele’s hat isn’t a dress fedora like Indy’s. Not only is it wider and features a tapered crown, but it seems to be made of a stiffer material and has a more “gathered” or pleated tonal ribbon that fades into the felt of the hat. In other words, Harry’s hat looks more like a safari hat than a true fedora. When you look at actual safari hats you can see their connection. I actually like this, because this is the best way to have Steele come across as a true adventurer— the safari hat is meant to be out of place with his military attire, creating an odd yet interesting juxtaposition.

If only the character was actually as cool as his clothes. 

Like the Indy films, the protagonist isn’t the only one with a cool look. There isn’t a lot of it, but the menswear found within is pretty nice, especially on two standout characters.

The first is Morgan, Harry’s “friend”/fellow plunderer. He’s an old man who is scraping by, trying to get his grubby little hands on any scam or treasure that comes through Cusco. If this movie is meant to take place in the year of its production/release, then Morgan is wearing some old clothes: a 30s cardigan (featuring a ribbed knit and cut short), a 1920s knit tie, and what seems to be an early 1900s four button jacket. This either implies that he’s scrounged around and simply wears old clothes or that these are his and he’s been in Cusco for decades. Morgan also seems to love his cardigan and tie so much that he wears it in multiple scenes, including in the finale where he adds a khaki coat and his own fedora. Overall, he looks like a disheveled bootlegger, not unlike the guys in Treasure of the Sierra Madre. 

Dr. Moorehead, the head of the excavation at Machu Picchu provides us with interesting sportswear (or tailored “work” wear).  He has the classical look of an archeologist, donning a khaki workshirt, big jodhpurs, and tall riding boots. In an interesting move, he has a suede waistcoat which for some may seem odd but makes sense when you consider that leather (ergo suede) was a workwear fabric before it became a luxury material. The suede continues in his triple patch pocket sportcoat which he wears with a tie when he wants to be dressed up and flirt with Elena. It’s such a cool look that we don’t see much of anymore, as most film adventurer attire now looks like variations of Indiana Jones/Steele.

There’s also a handful of other fun menswear looks to be seen in the film. Dr. Moorehead has an assistant whose safari jacket and workshirt remind me of Mac from Crystal Skull. There’s also a few shots of the gullible American tourists swindled by Steele that feature some great early 50s attire: Bold Look cut suits, Windsor knots, and more casual fedoras. I also like the local Peruvian people who seem to be wearing older styles, which make sense considering that other countries may not be as up to date on fashion trends and that the filmmakers shot on location. This is best seen in the official museum guide who appears to be wearing 30s cut clothing.  Spotting all of this stuff is one of the best games to do when watching movies as a menswear enthusiast!

We discuss this movie and all of its shortcomings on the bonus edition of Style & Direction above. It was a slog, but hey we were in an Indy mood! You can listen to a clip of the episode but you’ll have to subscribe on patreon for the full pod as well as access to our Discord!

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Buh-bye!

Ethan M. Wong (follow me on IG)| StyleandDirection

The Podcast is produced by MJ.