the friends of eddie coyle

So I watched 1973's "The friends of Eddie Coyle", starring tough guy Robert Mitchum. So considering it's age is this movie a classic, well I say ehhh. However, is this movie good, I say yes. This movie stars Mitchum as Eddie "fingers" Coyle a gritty thug from the bad side of Boston. I don't know the history of Boston crime movies but this is the oldest I have seen. It seems in the last decade there have been a lot of these type of movies with Boston as the backdrop, including the crown jewel of this collection "the departed." Well anyways, Mitchum is not in this movie alone and there are a lot of recognizable faces, including Peter Boyle. The only part of the plot I would like to mention is how the parallel stories involving Boyle and Mitchum slowly come together in the end. And not to give anything away, but the ending is just wonderful, and something I did not see coming. I really liked that. The performances are strong the story taut. The action is subtle and not over done. I really liked this movie, so why is it not a classic. I guess for me it was the little things, like the music for instance. It sounded like 70's porn music. I guess that is a small beef, but I just reviewed Das Boot (and though I didn't discuss it) one aspect of the film I did not like was the very synthesizer driven music that was very very 80's. So if you look at the departed with its awesome soundtrack that stretches across several decades to find great songs, I think it lends to the notion that a movie is the sum of its parts and often a big part of the story is supported by music. O.k well what else, well that was about it. So why am I still not calling this a classic. Well I guess while I was watching it, I kept thinking if they did it right this movie would make a great remake. I would never think that about say "star wars". It is a classic and doesn't need to be remade. So I guess this movie is great but I just wouldn't say "classic." I think if you like crime dramas or movies from this period you will like this movie. Do not get me wrong this is a great movie, just not timeless in style. So watch it and maybe comment on what you thought, I'd love to know.