The Friends of Eddie Coyle Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		3.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.5

The Friends of Eddie Coyle Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov December 30, 2015

Peter Yates' "The Friends of Eddie Coyle" (1973) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka Entertainment. The supplemental features on the disc include a long archival interview with the director and new video appreciation of the film by critic Glenn Kenny. The release also arrives with a 44-page illustrated booklet featuring a new essay on the film by Mike Sutton, and extensive interview with Peter Yates, and archival images. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

"Get to work, sweetie. You too lover."

ddie "Fingers" Coyle (Robert Mitchum, Out of the Past) has never been a star, but in Boston he is a popular man. He knows things -- how to get guns quickly, what crew is planning the next big hit, the name of the loser that will soon die in an accident.

Now, at the age of 51, Eddie is looking to make a deal. He has been caught driving a truck loaded with stolen booze and unless someone puts in a good word for him at the D.A.’s office in a few weeks he could be sent to jail in New Hampshire.

That someone could be Dave Foley (Richard Jordan, Rooster Cogburn), an ambitious local agent who has been dying to get promoted. Eddie thinks that he has the type of information that can inspire the agent to offer him a deal that will not only help him stay out of jail, but erase his past and let him start a new life someplace warm, like Arizona. When they first meet, Eddie offers to help the agent arrest an illegal gun dealer (Steven Keats, Hester Street). But the agent tricks Eddie and later on demands that he gives him something bigger, something that can convince the D.A. that he has truly switched sides.

The film is based on the best-selling novel by George V. Higgins, a prosecutor-turned-writer who knew the Boston underworld and the type of odd deals real cops and gangster struck there. It is a very moody piece, but it sees the dark side of Boston like a well researched documentary would -- without glamorizing and paying attention to all sorts of different details. (Even the accents are incredibly well done).

Mitchum is perfectly cast as the aging gangster. He looks appropriately jaded, like a man who has finally realized that his best years are behind him, and vulnerable. On the inside he is still tough, but he no longer has the energy and desire to go against the system and exploit its weaknesses. Now all he wants is the boring but safe life he once rejected. From the moment he steps in front of the camera Mitchum literally becomes this man; he does not play the old-timer, he is the old-timer.

The supporting cast is equally impressive. Peter Boyle plays the shady bartender Dillon and he also looks like a man who has spent the majority of his life pouring drinks and talking to dangerous people. Keats is cocky but careful, like a real small-time gun dealer who has done more deals than he can remember. And Foley is exactly the type of character James "Whitey" Bulger was probably talking to before he fled Boston in 1994.

Director Peter Yates shot the film with cinematographer Victor Kemper on location in Boston (Quincy, Back Bay, Beacon Hill, Dedham, etc). There is even a sequence that was shot in the Boston Garden during a real hockey game between the Bruins and the Blackhawks. Needless to say, the entire film oozes ‘70s Boston authenticity and atmosphere.

The stylish soundtrack was created by jazz legend Dave Grusin (Mike Nichols’ The Graduate, Steve Kloves’ The Fabulous Baker Boys).

The Friends of Eddie Coyle Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Peter Yates' The Friends of Eddie Coyle arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka Entertainment.

The release appears to have been sourced from the same master which Criterion used when they prepared their release of The Friends of Eddie Coyle earlier this year. (You can see our review of this release here). There are some obvious fluctuations that affect density. Grain is underexposed in some areas and as a result some softness is easy to spot. Color saturation can be somewhat inconsistent as well. Still, there are no traces of recent degraining and sharpening adjustments. Contrast levels are also stable. Predictably, even through there is room for some important improvements, the film does have a rather pleasing organic appearance. Image stability is very good. A few tiny blemishes can be seen, but there are no large debris, damage marks, cuts, or torn frames to report in our review. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

The Friends of Eddie Coyle Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

The quality of the audio track is identical to the quality of the lossless track found on the Criterion release. I did some direct comparison between key sequences from the film and could not detect any discrepancies. The same minor depth fluctuations are present here. However, clarity remains pleasing throughout the entire film. There are no pops, audio dropouts, or digital distortions to report in our review.

The Friends of Eddie Coyle Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Peter Yates - in this long archival interview, director Peter Yates explains how the idea about The Friends of Eddie Coyle emerged, and discusses George V. Higgins' novel that inspired it, his work with various rising stars (Barbra Streisand in particular), his initial interactions with Robert Mitchum, the standard of acting in America at the time (and the impact of theater actors in Hollywood), his dealings with various prominent producers, etc. The interview was conducted by Derek Malcolm at the National Film Theatre in 1996. In English, not subtitled. (78 min).

• Glenn Kenny - in this new video piece, film critic Glenn Kenny discusses George V. Higgins' novel and nature of the dialog that it used, some of the key reasons why The Friends of Eddie Coyle remains one of the best crime films from the 1970s, how the film is lit and shot, Robert Mitchum's deceptively natural performance, etc. The piece was filmed exclusively for Eureka Entertainment in New York City in 2015. In English, not subtitled. (23 min).

• Booklet - 44-page illustrated booklet featuring a new essay on the film by Mike Sutton, and extensive interview with Peter Yates, and archival images.

The Friends of Eddie Coyle Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Peter Yates directed The Friends of Eddie Coyle in 1973, but this film still feels relevant today. All one needs to do is take a look at Joe Berlinger's recent documentary Whitey: United States of America V. James J. Bulger and it becomes painfully obvious that in Boston cops and gangsters were always comfortable working together. The great Robert Mitchum is fantastic as the aging Eddie "Fingers" Coyle. Eureka Entertainment's upcoming release of this classic gangster film has been sourced from the same master which Criterion used earlier this year for the U.S. release. RECOMMENDED.