All of my friends who I've talked to about this movie who are fellow Shakespeare geeks have panned it. I will explain a bit here about why I actually enjoyed this movie and will watch it again...
When evaluating a movie or play, I think a crucial to define the category under which it's being evaluated. For example, evaluating Ian McKellen's Macbeth as a situation comedy would not rate it very highly. There were very few laughs. And evaluating Viggo Mortensen in "A History of Violence" as a musical extravaganza would similarly rate it poorly. This despite the fact that both were excellent, all around.
So how should this version of Cymbeline be rated? As a straightforward Shakespearean production, it would not score very highly. As a Shakespeare geek, applying that measurement was my first thought. Under that categorization, for example, Joss Whedon's "Much Ado About Nothing" was superb. Not that I'm biased, being a total Joss fan boy... :)
But while I was watching this version of Cymbeline, I found myself enjoying it. I wasn't *loving* it but I enjoyed the experience and I know I'll watch it again. Then it occurred to me that I enjoyed it because it did what so few Hollywood movies do these days: it took some big chances and tried to do something memorable. It hired some very talented people (Ed Harris, Milla Jovovich, Anton Yelchin; NOT Ethan Hawke. I'm reserving judgement on the lovely Dakota Johnson) and took on the huge challenge of setting one of Shakespeare's most complex plot lines in a modern setting. Cymbeline is a very thoughtful fairy tale play and thoughtful isn't something we see a lot of in Hollywood. It tried to do something big and succeeded modestly, in my opinion.
So given that categorization, I would recommend taking a look at this movie.
