This form of appearance was common down through the Qing dynasty. The fashions and apparel of traditional Japanese culture were originally adopted from Tang Chinese culture. Today, most people have turned cause and effect on their heads, and that is why they think Mulan has a "Japanese" flavor.
而日本傳統文化中的造型、衣飾本來承襲自盛唐文化，現在一般人反而倒果為因，才會認為花木蘭有「日本味」。