Is there any truth to the Independence Ceremony that was staged by the Japanese? I know that the Bonifacio grandson was fictional and in turn feel think the Manila Rose character must have been. What other fictions are in this film? For the most part it seems they stayed pretty close to history.
We (United States) did occupy the Philippine Islands before World War II. The Japanese did invade the day after they bombed Pearl Harbor. I should say they attacked; I think that the actual invasion troops hit the beach December 9 or 10, 1941. Brigadier General Wainwright's nickname was "Skinny," but I note that no one called him General Wainwright. General MacArthur did evacuate under direct orders of President Roosevelt. And after General Wainwright surrendered all forces in the Philippines on 8 May 1942 to General Homma, many American soldiers avoided capture and joined Philippine resistance forces. They continued a guerilla war against the Japanese from 8 May 1942 until joining with American forces who returned on 20 October 1944.
Pretty much everything else in the movie is made up for the drama. The Japanese were horrendously oppressive, the beat, murdered, and infamously abused the Filipinos, but you would be hard pressed to find specific events as depicted in this film. John Wayne's character, Colonel something, is entire fictitious.
"Fargo" claimed to be a true story, too. This one is, at least based on true events.
The best diplomat I know is a fully charged phaser bank.