I personally did not like the new female character (Maria), as I viewed her as an American stereotype. However, after reading a review with a voice actor in the movie, in which she said Hideaki Anno views Maria as an entity that will "change everything about Evangelion," I can see his point. She does not act remotely like the rest of the Eva pilots, and I look forward to seeing more of her interactions with them in Q.
In summation, if you want a new take on an intelligent series that knows how to balance action scenes and spares no expense, then you need to watch this movie.
