Production on a new murder mystery film begins in St. Paul

Ross Raihala, Pioneer Press
Updated ·4 min read
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Filming began Monday in St. Paul on “Unholy Communion,” a murder mystery based on the book of the same name by Scandia author Thomas Rumreich.

The film stars Vincent Kartheiser (“Mad Men,” “Another Day in Paradise”) and Adam Bartley (“Longmire,” “NCIS: Los Angeles”) — both native Minnesotans — and features a largely local cast and crew who spent Monday shooting at Keenan’s Bar and Grill on West 7th Street. Filming is expected to take four weeks in and around St. Paul.

“I have to say it’s a dream come true,” said the 81-year-old retired dentist. “I’m still dumbfounded it’s actually happening,” added his wife, Ruth.

“Unholy Communion” follows a Washington County investigator who is tracking a serial killer preying on priests. Rumreich based the novel on his own experience of being sexually abused by a priest when he was a college student at St. John’s University.

“I started college in 1960 and, at the time, St. John’s was a hotbed of sexual abuse,” he said. “I unfortunately got caught up in that.”

He did not report the abuse to the school. “You’ve got to remember that at that time, there were consequences if I would have made an accusation,” he said. “The school would not have believed it. My family would not have believed it. You didn’t talk about those things.”

Rumreich left the school after two years and went on to earn a master’s degree in psychology. After spending two years in the field, he decided to fulfill his childhood goal and entered dental school at the University of Minnesota. He opened his own practice in 1973 in Forest Lake.

In addition to his own office, Rumreich spent 16 years working as a forensic odontologist for the Ramsey County Medical Examiner.

“I’ve always been interested in forensic dentistry and why death has occurred,” he said. “There’s an old saying in our business, we come into the world pretty much the same way, but the means of exit are infinite.”

Rumreich worked on what he said were some very fascinating and oftentimes difficult cases, including the 1999 murder of 19-year-old Katie Poirier, who was abducted from a Moose Lake convenience store by Donald Blom, who died last year in prison. Rumreich was able to identify Poirier’s remains thanks to a single tooth found in a fire pit at Blom’s home. Her dentist had used what, at the time, was an experimental product on the tooth, which helped Rumreich make the identification. “It was very amazing,” he said.

After undergoing what he called “a fair amount of counseling,” Rumreich said he was able to come to terms with his abuse. But it remained in the back of his mind for decades.

“It made me furious the Catholic Church was not willing to come forward and admit these things were going on and then not doing something about it,” he said.

Over the years, Rumreich took to writing in his spare time, for his own amusement rather than potential publication. That changed in 2015, when he decided to draw on his own experiences, both of his own abuse and his work in forensic dentistry, to craft what would become “Unholy Communion.” He spent five years on the novel.

“The story was in my head long before that,” he said. “But it wasn’t something I was emotionally ready to sit down and write. It took me back into situations that I would rather be able to forget about.”

Rumreich published the book in 2020 with St. Paul’s Beaver’s Pond Press, which is located just down the street from Keenan’s. (Rumreich said several other shoots are planned along West 7th Street.)

After numerous people told Rumreich his novel had movie potential, he approached local writer, director and actor Patrick Coyle, who ended up writing a screenplay. The pair went on to stage two readings with professional actors and an invited audience who gave the script a standing ovation both times, Rumreich said.

The Rumreichs and Coyle then found about 15 investors to fund the budget, which Rumreich said was in the mid-six figures.

“We have some friends who heard about the project and felt it was a worthwhile investment,” Rumreich said. “And Patrick knows people in the theater and movie business who understand investment. He has pulled in people familiar with the risks and rewards involved.”

The Rumreichs and Coyle think they’ll have a finished product in about a year, after which time Coyle plans to shop it to festivals and potential distributors.

Ultimately, the project wasn’t about selling books or making a film.

“I thought maybe putting this down on paper would be somewhat cathartic for me,” Rumreich said. “This is a story that needs to be told.”

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