In the opening episode of the hit film at the beginning of 2026 "The Art of Sarah", the female lead Shin Hye Sun led the audience into a world of luxury full of masks. One of the most valuable details is the scene that exposes the truth about the Hermès Birkin bag – symbol of wealth – through a tricky appraisal.
The story begins when a friend of Sarah Kim (Shin Hye Sun) proudly shows off the Birkin bag she was given, an item that is market-priced from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of USD and extremely difficult to buy. However, suspecting its origin, this friend took it for verification.
The appraisal result was that it was a fake Hermès Birkin bag. It is worth mentioning that this bag was bought for 5.5 million won (about 100 million VND) - a not small number, enough to buy many other high-end branded bags, but it is just "a drop in the ocean" compared to the true value of a genuine Birkin.
This price level shows the sophistication of the counterfeit market when they are not too cheap to be suspected immediately, but are high-end enough to create an "illusion of class" for the owner.
The explanation of the appraisal expert in the film not only shocked the character but also made the audience ponder: "Fake goods are often very perfect, sometimes even surpassing real goods. Because the goal of real goods is not to create perfection.
The reason why the Hermès Birkin bag cannot find absolute perfection is because it is handmade, completely hand-stitched (saddle stitch) by a single artisan. Because it is a product from human hands, the needle and thread lines will have a characteristic tilt and sometimes have extremely small deviations. These personal "deficiencies" are machines that can never be copied.
Fake bags are often produced by the most modern machinery to achieve millimeter-to-mile precision. However, that uniformity and soullessness is evidence that they are industrial products, lacking the "soul" of Pantin (France) handicrafts.
In fact, there are many high-end brands that are denounced by users when using products. Typically, the Goyard bag case was "dyed" when the hand-painted paint on the bag melted or faded after a period of use, although the price was not cheap at all.
The elaborate embellished designs of MiuMiu or Chanel sometimes make users "cry" because the buttons worth a month's salary... fall out when just worn.
This scene is a sharp satirical remark by the director about superficiality. In Sarah's world, where everything can be fabricated from degrees to personal backgrounds, the 5.5 million won fake bag is the embodiment of people trying to "act" rich roles.
In the film, Sarah Kim is the founder of the luxury brand Boudoir, targeting the group of customers in the top 0.1% richest. From the large Christmas tree placed solemnly in the center of the store to the modern display space, where Boudoir sparkling bags are introduced, the art design has clearly recreated the rich and sophisticated atmosphere.
In particular, the Boudoir bag plays a key role in the storyline. Director Kim Jin Min shared: "We chose a design that can clearly reflect wealth, beauty and vanity in just one look.
