The latest on the Japanese dating-scene bulletin says ikumen are it. And what exactly are ikumen? These are men (perhaps the first in the history of this nation) willing to nurture and raise children, and actually profess to enjoy it. Coming from a family whose male members would have all chosen ritual suicide over changing diapers, this is an incredible turn of events.
Which is why a movie like "We Bought a Zoo" is bound to have Japanese women (it can't just be me, right?) in a vice grip of longing. Not only is the protagonist portrayed by Matt Damon an ikumen of the first caliber, he's willing to expand his horizons by including animals in the list of living organisms that must be fed, loved and cared for. The mere description of such a man brings tears to my eyes.
"We Bought a Zoo" is based on the real-life experiences of the Mee family (they make a brief cameo appearance in the movie), whose tale is recounted in a book of the same title by the dad, journalist Benjamin Mee, played on screen by Damon.