Worn by: Franco Silva as Comandante Luigi Ferri
Reference: Panerai Radiomir
Brand: Panerai
Luigi Ferri is a secret agent and Gamma frogman who, disguised as a civil servant at the Italian consulate in Alexandretta (Iskenderun, Turkey), conducts covert underwater sabotage operations against Allied ships transporting chromium ore during World War II. The character is loosely based on real operative Luigi Ferraro who sank three Allied vessels. The Rolex-Panerai reference 3646 seen throughout the diving sequences represents the standard-issue equipment for Italy's Gamma frogmen units—specialized combat swimmers who conducted solo sabotage missions rather than the manned torpedo operations of other Decima Flottiglia MAS teams. The 47mm cushion case with wire lugs provided the oversized legibility essential for underwater timing and navigation in Mediterranean harbors. Like the 3646 watches in other early 1950s Italian war films, this example likely featured updated dials and hands since the original radium-based luminous material required replacement every 3-5 years. The film shows Ferri wearing both the 3646 watch and a 1940s Panerai compass—the complete navigation suite issued to Italian combat divers. The watch appears in close-up sequences as Ferri conducts dangerous underwater infiltration missions, demonstrating the 3646's role as a critical tactical instrument for solo operatives working behind enemy lines in neutral Turkish waters.
Source: https://perezcope.com/2022/02/04/vintage-rolex-panerai-on-the-big-screen/