The Rosary Murders (1987)

I discovered the film The Rosary Murders (1987) completely by accident via the Comcast on-Demand free movie tab of my regional cable tv provider. I pride myself on my awareness of cinema of the decade of the 1980s (the more obscure, the more I like it) so I was rather surprised that I had never seen or even heard about this particular film. The movie has been classified in the genres of mystery and neo noir.  It is based upon a novel of the same name.  

The novel The Rosary Murders is the first in a series of books featuring Father Robert Koesler, written by author William X. Kienzle, a former priest-turned-novelist. Kienzle co-wrote the screenplay, along with acclaimed crime novelist Elmore Leonard-whose novels and stories have been adapted into movies like Get Shorty and Out of Sight, and the Justified tv series.  The director of The Rosary Murders, Fred Walton, also worked on the script.

The Rosary Murders film is set largely in the gritty Southwest side of Detroit of the 1980s.  I’ve never been to Detroit, but the city looks almost as depressed and run-down in the 80s, as it does in current news footage.  Consequently, the background camera shots of the city’s decrepit look facilitate a necessary dark and foreboding atmosphere for the story.  In addition, location shooting at Detroit’s historic Holy Redeemer Roman Catholic Church lends a bit of real-life pastoral authenticity to the proceedings.   

Donald Sutherland stars as main protagonist Father Koesler (pronounced Kess-ler).  Father Koesler’s parish is the focus of the main drama, during which a string of priests and sisters alike are brutally murdered with impunity by an unseen, vengeful killer.  The one thing all the victims have in common, is that they are left for dead with a single, identical black set of rosary beads draped delicately in one hand. The deaths of each of the victims is depicted onscreen in varying degrees -either only the aftermath is shown, or the deaths are vividly, shockingly, and violently played out in front of the cameras.   

There are also a few interesting sub-plots along the way-Father Koesler makes the acquaintance of female investigative reporter (and lapsed Catholic) Pat Lennon (Belinda Bauer) who is in dogged pursuit of the killer.  The two form a strong bond during the course of the events of the story, that veers dangerously toward the romantic.  Veteran character actor Charles Durning plays Father Ted Nabors, Pastor of Father Koesler’s church, serving as an antagonist of sorts here.  Father Nabors is, in many respects, the opposite to Father Koesler, including in personality and pastorally.

Anyone who has ever asked-particularly people of faith, and especially Catholic Christians-what might happen if a priest were ever to be confided in by a killer in the confessional, may obtain one answer in this film.  Father Koesler happens to be the priest in question, and his struggle with whether to break the seal of the sacrament of confession is a key plot point of the movie.  There’s mostly a lot of outside pressure on the priest, particularly from the quarters of law enforcement.  When cops start getting murdered by the killer, that pressure reaches higher dimensions, as not all police are Catholic, or willing to abide by the professional restrictions of the priesthood-as one cop less-than-eloquently states to Father Koesler.

As far as the mystery as to who is actually killing all these religious, this is less of a revelation in the story, than the motive behind the killings.  The motive also has a direct tie-in to some of the central characters in this drama.  But, even if we, the audience, find out who exactly is responsible early on, we don’t actually get to see the perpetrator’s face until nearly the end of the movie.   

All three of the leads-Sutherland, Durning, and Bauer-turn in believable performances in this picture, particularly Sutherland.  I was unfamiliar with Australian Bauer’s work, but she’s very capable in this role. I’ve read she’s retired from acting, and is now a licensed Psychologist.

As a Catholic Christian, I did find myself researching the theological truth behind some of what’s portrayed onscreen.  For instance, Father Koesler and Father Nabors violently disagree, at one point, over whether a baby born out-of-wedlock can be legitimately baptized in the Church.  Both men display such strength and certainty in their convictions, that it’s difficult to determine, based on what’s said and what’s shown, who is actually right.  Prior knowledge of the correct protocol by the viewer is not required, however, as the difference of opinion between the two men serves well to highlight the opposite nature of both, and the dividing wedge between them.

After watching The Rosary Murders film, I am curious to seek out the original source material.  Kienzle wrote twenty-four books in the Father Koesler mystery series, the last of which appeared about a year after Kienzle’s death in 2002.  It is unfortunate that the film version was not financially successful-it only made $1,730,337 at the box office for the Samuel Goldwyn Company, low even for 1987 standards.  I would have liked to have seen the further screen adventures of Father Koesler.

Perhaps some budding filmmaker out there will take another crack at adapting these stories?  It would be an interesting and welcome development, to be sure.  We can always use more movies with people of faith, particularly the religious, in a positive cinematic role.