I know why everyone has such praise for this movie...

Rating: Null/10 (2 June 2001)

If you don't understand it, it must be good. People are afraid to pan this movie, because they think somebody will come along and say how much of a neaderthal they are. Well, face the facts, folks, the movie isn't as good as you are afraid it might have been.
Some have criticized the plot; I'll go to the other end of the spectrum--it's not that beautiful of a movie. Ang seems to be going the way of a sitcom director--focus in close on people's faces. When there is a wide enough shot to actually see the scenery, the action is so hyperfast that you can't enjoy it.
One other thing that really visually distracted me--the poor effects. The wire work wasn't that great--I'm supposed to believe that these people, who have reached such a sense of oneness with the universe that they can fly, are going to be flailing their legs all over the place while flying? If you really want to portray the majesty of flight, let's really get a feel for them flying, not waving their appendages to keep their balance on the wires.
And the infamous plot (I never said I wouldn't criticize it, I just wanted to start somewhere else) was pretty much as bad as people say. In fact, I should say both plots weren't great. On the one side, a man decides to give up his current path in life, only to find that he can't. He's in love with somebody, too (doesn't he have to be?). On the other side, a girl falls in love with the Dread Pirate Roberts--sorry, wrong movie. Same difference, though. At least Princess Bride had some humor. Cookie cutter, all around. Too bad they took two hours to tell it--it was a 15 minute story, at best.
All that said, I'd still give the movie 5 stars out of 10--it's not bad, it just isn't great. Rent it or buy the DVD, and fast forward through chunks of it.