Feuten: Het Feestje

Elias de Leeuw and his friend Lieve travel to Amsterdam to begin their studies during introduction week. Nostalgia mingles with the rush of new beginnings as they navigate campus life. They soon run into Bram Wagtmans, who hints at a late-night party hosted by the tight-knit fraternity H.S.C. Mercurius.

Bram’s reluctance to celebrate softens as memories flood back, and he reaches out to friends to see who might join. Olivier de Ruyter, a longtime student with a reputation for pushing boundaries, is drawn into the plan. The idea of one last chaotic campus ritual takes hold.

Despite a police ban, the organizers push ahead with a private gathering that will feel like a last hurrah for those who know the campus rituals. Lieve goes to the venue primarily because Bram will be there, while Elias arrives later, unsure of his place in the chaos. A party-door moment registers Elias as an aspiring member of the fraternity, foreshadowing the night’s ripple effects.

The police arrive to shut the party down, and Beeksma and Noordzij cut off access to the upper floors to regain control. In a misguided prank, a cask of beer is toppled, spilling onto a police car and heightening the sense that authority and rebellion are tangled. The tension in the venue grows as alarms—and expectations—rise.

Elias catches another glimpse of Lieve upstairs in the company of Bram, but Lieve’s reaction is cool rather than relieved, underscoring the night’s fragile dynamics. The proximity of past friendships and present desires intensifies the crowd’s unease. The night’s thread of loyalty and longing becomes more tangled.

A confrontation erupts outside, and a police officer’s strike against Elias leaves him bleeding. A chance encounter with a girl who tends to his wound provides a quiet counterpoint to the surrounding uproar. Olivier posts about the wound on social media, framing Elias as a hero of the moment and inflaming the situation.

Olivier’s post about Elias’s wound circulates online, turning a chaotic incident into a symbol of rebellious youth. The online narrative deepens divides between attendees and authorities and pushes the night toward a broader confrontation. The crowd’s anger grows as the glow of the party fades.

Bram and Lieve nearly connect on a more intimate level, but Bram pulls back, remarking that ‘there are plenty more like you.’ The tension between desire and judgment threads through the night as old loyalties pull in different directions. The moment highlights the fragile balance between affection and consequences.

Elias shares a moment with another girl he’s met, only to be interrupted by a despondent call from Lieve that pulls him away. The competing currents of connection and responsibility pull the night in conflicting directions. The relationships at the center of the night become more complicated.

As the night wears on, some party-goers heed the police and leave, while others stay, caught in the momentum of rebellion. Olivier surrenders himself in an effort to spare the house from a full shutdown, but the authorities decide to close the venue anyway. The last reserves of the night give way to inevitability.

A final clash erupts between the remaining party-goers and the police. Elias sees the treasurer of the fraternity being arrested, and in a desperate bid to protect her, he strikes an officer. Both Elias and the treasurer are dragged away in handcuffs, leaving the night ending in uncertainty rather than triumph.

In the aftermath, Elias and his partner—who stands as the treasurer of the fraternity—open a new bank account for a reimagined H.S.C. Mercurius. Olivier begins a slow road to rebuilding his life through community service and job hunting. The couple faces an uncertain future together, their bond forged in the night’s fire of memory, loyalty, and consequence.