475 The Friends of Eddie Coyle

[Tom Hagen]

Count me among the Forum members who spent their Thursday night with this film.

Say what you will about the usual Kent Jones hyperbole, he was right about one thing: this film's greatest asset is the work of the ensemble as a whole. Mitchum was as advertised, but I was duly impressed with how understated and cool the rest of the cast played the picture as well. Great fucking dialogue, excellent location photography. The film's aesthetic and themes fit so many of my preexisting categories of taste that I couldn't help but immediately love it. This was my favorite Criterion-induced discovery in many years.

Is the film canon worthy? Probably not. But thank God that Criterion's imprimatur has rescued this gem from the long shadow of the Godfather films and Chinatown.

[oldsheperd]

I think the robbery scenes were excellent in this film. Real top notch attention to detail that you don't get in most other films.
Mitchum's character always telling some strange story to his gun-runner contact was pretty classic. He totally seemed like one of these old guys you run into who has a story about everything.

[jbeall]

I'll join the chorus of folks saying it's well made and very well-acted, but it's good, not great. And somewhat formulaic; certainly not what I'd consider an "important" film. Is there anybody out there who cares to explain what the rest of us are missing?

[knives]

It's important because Criterion desperately wanted to shut up the people who were begging for Mitchum in the collection.

[MyNameCriterionForum]

I think yates is a really "blah" director. I have a soft spot for Breaking Away but don't think much of anything else he's done. Mitchum is pretty damned great in Coyle, though. That trench coat he wears always reminds me of M. Hulot, though, haha.

I like Charley Varrick much more. Dunno why I always think of one when I think of the other.

[chizbooga]

I like Charley Varrick much more. Dunno why I always think of one when I think of the other.

Perhaps because they're both films with an aging Old-Hollywood megastar as the double-dealing small-time crook main character, featuring bank robberies, made in 1973?

[akaten]

I think yates is a really "blah" director. I have a soft spot for Breaking Away but don't think much of anything else he's done. Mitchum is pretty damned great in Coyle, though. That trench coat he wears always reminds me of M. Hulot, though, haha.

I like Charley Varrick much more. Dunno why I always think of one when I think of the other.

Feel I need to jumb in and defend a fellow Ye Olde Hampshire man, by any chance have you seen Peter Yates' Robbery, if not I recommend you and others who have just seen Eddie Coyle do so, reckon its the closest he comes to a wholly satisfying work, certainly my favourite crime film of his, there's some wonderfully tense sequences such as the helicopter flyby and the way it lingers over the watchtower creating abstract compositions. At its best it has that tough no nonsense attitude that is sadly lost in crime cinema making today, its also of interest for the brief sequence of the mini being released from the back of the van, no surprise to see that producer Michael Deeley also produced The Italian Job.

[flyonthewall2983]

I'm not as familiar with Mitchum's work as some here I'm sure, but I was very impressed with how he pulled off this very blue-collar gun runner. Boyle and some of the other supporting parts are great too, including a nice small appearance by James Tolkan. All in all, a great and gritty 70's crime film (complete with Dave Gruisin's soft-core porn soundtrack). Ironically, like Tom, I spent my Thursday night with this one too.

[zedz]

Watched this last night and thought it was great. What I really liked about it was the very ordinariness of it. It's so rare that a crime film from anywhere gets right to the end with so little heightening, and you see this really strongly in Mitchum's performance.

He's got two typically 'big' scenes in his character arc. One isn't in the film at all:

Spoiler

making the decision to rat out his friends.

The other one

Spoiler

takes place off screen while he's unconscious - he sleepwalks to oblivion.

Forgoing this kind of stuff is a bold step for both director and actor, but Mitchum is so good in this film that I'd still nominate this performance as 'Exhibit A' in the case for Mitchum as a great screen actor. A beautifully shaped, subtle and natural low-key performance, really rare for a designated 'movie star'. He's great in a lot of films, but he's only about 10% of the greatness of something like Night of the Hunter. This film is so stripped down he's closer to 50% and, as others have noted, everybody else seems to be performing at the same high (or low) level.

What the film forsakes in terms of conventional action and melodramatics it more than makes up for in atmosphere and detail. I really enjoyed it.

[HistoryProf]

I'm not as familiar with Mitchum's work as some here I'm sure, but I was very impressed with how he pulled off this very blue-collar gun runner. Boyle and some of the other supporting parts are great too, including a nice small appearance by James Tolkan. All in all, a great and gritty 70's crime film (complete with Dave Gruisin's soft-core porn soundtrack). Ironically, like Tom, I spent my Thursday night with this one too.

I must take issue with anything remotely disparaging of the soundtrack on this one...among the best from the 70s i've ever heard. I could almost feel my polyester pantsuit itching and feel the shag carpet under my feet as I watched this one. simply one of the best gritty 70s crime flicks i've seen. perhaps it was the shades of nostalgia the soundtrack especially awoke in my as a kid who grew up on Rockford Files et al...but this movie - Mitchum in particular - just oozes cool. Great flick and I was very pleasantly surprised given the trepidation everyone here seemed to feel after seeing it. As soon as the music popped up on the main menu I knew i was in for a treat! There's nothing porno about it.....pure 70s cop show all the way.

Best $9.01 i've yet spent...thanks B&N!!

[flyonthewall2983]

Who said I was being disparaging?

[domino harvey]

I always forget this film even exists until every so often when this thread gets bumped. It's not a bad picture, but I imagine I'm not alone.

[jbeall]

A.O. Scott has a short video appreciation for the film.

[DTP]

Did anyone see last night's episode of Leverage?
They twice mentioned that one of the crime families was headed by an "Artie Van."
Nice tribute.

Also, the exra scenes in the book that weren't in the movie add a lot of sense to the whole thing.

[Person]

I saw this film a few day ago.

I love Mitchum, but this is a loosely-made movie. It has it's moments, but it is very depressing, many scenes are needlessly slow and Grusin's score is library-music-esque, he did good scores before and after (and he is still working) but Jazz doesn't work with crime thrillers, I feel; perhaps that is why compsers were more selective in later years. Jazz is a great medium, I love like electronic music, but it doesn't always work in movies, I feel. I feel that way about for reasons unknown even to the author.

Mitchum is amazing in this, the ganja-puffin', muscle-bound, big-dicked hunk. He struggled in the late 60s, not helped by his (I'm paraphrasing, use You Tube) 'nuke the Cong' comments. He loved arguments, yet he loved cannabis. He was a classic out-in-the-open human, fearless beast, full of words, fists, booze and sleeping. Twats rule this bountiful planet... yet... make more Mitchums!

[knives]

Personally I think it, and Yates movie's in general, work because of the looseness. Things just roll along into a nasty little lump. I love the music too though so maybe we're on just that different of a wave length.

[flyonthewall2983]

Did anyone see last night's episode of Leverage?
They twice mentioned that one of the crime families was headed by an "Artie Van."

It's had a couple of other nods recently. It was mentioned in an episode of Rescue Me and I believe it's featured briefly in The Town, with Jeremy Renner's character in watching it before the now-infamous scene (thanks to the GOP) where Affleck asks for his help.

[starmanof51]

Did anyone see last night's episode of Leverage?
They twice mentioned that one of the crime families was headed by an "Artie Van."

I've never seen the show, but I'm led to understand that they do that quite a lot (using character names to wink at movies/other series).

[swo17]

Blu-ray upgrade coming April 28

[flyonthewall2983]

Awesome, I've been hoping this would come out on Blu.

[tenia]

And again an upgrade with close to no extras and a 4 ears old HD Master but a high tier price...

[The Narrator Returns]

I believe this is the first upgrade of a title with a large booklet (it's like 44 pages long) since the end of dual-format. The stats doesn't say anything about a booklet, so they're going to have to use some really small print on that fold-out poster.

[cdnchris]

I think the reason for the foldouts is so they don't have to print multiple sized booklets/inserts (one for DVD, one for Blu-ray). With the foldouts they only have to print one size and just fold it appropriately to fit inside the case. Since they're only printing a Blu-ray in this case I don't think they'll go the fold out route here. They've at least done inserts for their Ali and F for Fake releases (though they replaced the nice booklets that were in the original DVDs).

And I should mention the sell sheets still indicate the essay and the Rolling Stone article are still included (so I would think they would have to do a booklet).

[TMDaines]

I think the reason for the foldouts is so they don't have to print multiple sized booklets/inserts (one for DVD, one for Blu-ray). With the foldouts they only have to print one size and just fold it appropriately to fit inside the case. Since they're only printing a Blu-ray in this case I don't think they'll go the fold out route here. They've at least done inserts for their Ali and F for Fake releases (though they replaced the nice booklets that were in the original DVDs).

And I should mention the sell sheets still indicate the essay and the Rolling Stone article are still included (so I would think they would have to do a booklet).

Surely, they could just use a Blu-ray case size booklet for both types of releases?

If you're still buying DVD releases over Blu-ray ones, you're accepting a lesser picture quality so it would be rather churlish to complain that your booklet doesn't maximise the space available in your case. Better that then a leaflet, no?

[AnamorphicWidescreen]

Really enjoyed The Friends of Eddie Coyle; I've seen it a couple of times now, and the Boston setting, story, and acting are all perfect. This is a good example of why the '70's was the best decade for cinema.

Spoiler

The final scene with Peter Boyle & his understated dialogue was fantastic.....

And, speaking of The Town, there was a scene in that film that was an obvious homage to TFOEC...