Eeesh!

Amongst many, many other failings it was also surprisingly unfunny... though, to be fair, you could tell where you were supposed to laugh.

Vacuous. Which I guess is at least an appropriate major flaw, seeing as it's set in space... the vacuum of... heh heh... sorry.

So so so bad.
Not a single character to root for (or even mildly tolerate) and plot holes you could hide a universe in.
Avoid like the, erm, plague.

Jaw-droppingly awful.
I think I only watched it the whole (extended version) way through because I couldn't believe what my eyes and ears were telling me (my poor tortured senses).
Redeeming features you ask: Sam Neill and Charlotte Rampling (and Lucy Russell isn't bad), though why they're in this film at all is baffling; oh, and that it (eventually) ends.
Surely it can't be that bad you say... oh but it is.
Painfully-bad acting from Romola (to be fair this is the first thing I've seen her in), a title character you couldn't empathise with if you were paid, god-awful dialogue, laughable set design, and a whole of host of other flaws that lead you to wonder whether your DVD skipped on the part with time-machines and body-snatching.
Amazingly someone felt this film warranted a "Making of..." featurette on the DVD, and, hypnotised by the horror, I was compelled to watch that too. It seems that making it was only marginally more fun than watching it - some of the actors' comments about the script made me laugh, the director's explanation for the "special" effects was vaguely interesting, and poor Sam Neill looked like he'd rather be anywhere else. But I digress...
All in all I think this movie could qualify for cruel and unusual punishment (I'm not sure that you'd even have to put it on a loop).
Wow, I feel so mean...
Maybe the shorter international version was better...
Who am I kidding... 2 hours shorter wouldn't bump this up to a turkey qualification.
Only watch if you enjoy creative disasters.

Emperor's new clothes.

Great actors, great setting, but... surprisingly superficial.
A shame.

(Cue the angry mob with pitchforks and flaming torches.)
Such a classic and yet such a let down. I finally got to see this the whole way through, and, bar the occasional half-laugh, was bored. Really surprising considering its legend status... oh well.
(For the angry mob: I did "get it", I'm just not laughing.)