Saw this in October (with one of the American producers no less). The cinematography is absolutely brilliant, very inspired technique from a guy who you think would have explored the outer limits of color in film; andI thought the narrative was very interesting and well done despite its simplicity. I'm not sure American audiences are going to be really be into it because Zhang Yimou is as interested in conveying themes and narrative through cinematography, mise en scene, and color much more than through words and structured narrative progression (though he's quite good at that as well when he so chooses), but I thought it was great stuff, if not necessarily one of his best works. I get the feeling that the reception will be more House of Flying Daggers (another utterly brilliant film that doesn't get the credit it deserves because of its interest in conveying themes visually as much, or more so than narratively) than say Hero.
I've been waiting on the official release for quite a while now, and I'll definitely be seeing it again when it hits theaters.