It's one of my favourite films but I've always wondered if it is as true to history as it seems
Sorry if this is the wrong place to ask!
This is the perfect place to ask, and it's being answered numerous times before.
This is the best answer IMO:
The answer is that it's so inaccurate you should think of it as "based on a fictionalized version 1860s Japan which is in turn based on popular image of 1860s Japan" rather than "an accurate portrayal of 1860s Japan"