If you’ve watched Undercover, you are familiar with Ferry Bouman. Thanks to the film Ferry, we now know how he came to be. The drug trade in Amsterdam in 2006 is controlled by powerful criminal Ralph Brink. Ferry is his right-hand man – an executor of sorts. In the course of an armed robbery, Ralph’s son is shot and severely injured by a group of campers in Brabant.
Ralph sends Ferry to Brabant – where Ferry once lived – to find the perps. Ferry’s return to Brabant and the conflict of interests he’ll face as the film progresses adds some welcome emotion to the otherwise violence-filled film. It is a must-watch if you’ve watched or desire to watch Undercover.
Ferry’s story is loosely based on real-life drug dealer Janus van Wessenbeeck
Ferry’s mission when he goes to Brabant is to find who is responsible for injuring Ralph’s son. His search leads him to a man named Lars van Marken, who Ferry can’t kill because he is the brother of Ferry’s love interest, Danielle.
As the film winds down, Ferry retreats to a campsite in Brabant to live with Danielle, who informs him that Lars manufactures ecstasy pills. That revelation kick-starts Ferry’s tenure as a drug lord.
Ferry’s journey is somewhat similar to Janus Van Wessenbeeck’s. Janus is regarded by European media as sort of a Pablo Escobar. He was one of the most prominent drug smugglers in Belgium and Netherlands. Like Ferry, Janus also operated out of a campsite.
Janus was arrested in the early 90s with ecstasy worth an estimated 34 million Euros. He was arrested in Belgium in multiple occasions before being released on condition that he doesn’t return to the country.
The geographical location of Janus and Ferry’s drug operations match. Furthermore, Ferry’s methods of operation appear drawn from Janus’ criminal set-up. Due to the similarities, we are almost certain that Janus van Wessenbeck provided some motivation for the creation of the fictional Ferry Bouman.