Criterion Collection has added a version of The Friends Of Eddie Coyle to their release schedule, bringing Peter Yates’ 1973 film to DVD in May.

In one of the best performances of his legendary career, Robert Mitchum plays small-time gunrunner Eddie “Fingers” Coyle in Peter Yates’s adaptation of George V. Higgins’s acclaimed novel The Friends Of Eddie Coyle. World-weary and living hand to mouth, Coyle works on the sidelines of the seedy Boston underworld just to make ends meet. But when he finds himself facing a second stretch of hard time, he’s forced to weigh loyalty to his criminal colleagues against snitching to stay free. Directed with a sharp eye for its gritty locales and an open heart for its less-than-heroic characters, this is one of the true treasures of 1970s Hollywood filmmaking – a suspenseful crime drama in stark, unforgiving daylight.

The release will feature a Dolby Digital mono audio track and will contain a Commentary Track featuring director Peter Yates. Also included is a Still Gallery and a Booklet featuring a new essay by film critic Kent Jones and a 1973 on-set profile of Robert Mitchum from Rolling Stone Magazine. “The Friends Of Eddie Coyle” will be in stores on May 19 for 29.95.