I have seen this movie more than once and I am trying to understand the hostility it has generated. I am old enough to have seen the original TV series the first time around and while I remember it fondly, it was definitely a product of its time. What makes this film so enjoyable for me is that it is not merely trying to copy the old series but to reinvent it. Ralph Fiennes and Uma Thurman are John Steed and Emma Peel this time around. No they aren't Patrick Macnee and Diana Rigg nor should they try to be. They have created their own version of the characters and they work quite well together. Their overwritten dialogue is overplayed with just the proper restraint. Sean Connery as Sir August, the principal villian, seems to be underplaying his role until you notice his eyes. Watch the eyes of all the characters. They are an important motif throughout the movie. Jim Broadbent's liquid eyes as "Mother" are full of knowledge and sympathy while Fiona Shaw's traitorous "Father" is literally blind to everything. Patrick Macnee (the original John Steed) has an important cameo as an invisible man. He holds the key to the mystery but he cannot be seen.