Sandro Groganz talks in this post on his blog about templating and why it really matters all that much (and a mention of the new template system for eZ publish).

Those with some years of experience in the software business know: the implementation or decision upon a template engine is always good for flame wars.

Why? Templates are such a basic technology of a CMS, a must-have and not really something sexy. Those who hoped to make templates sexy, invented XSLT.

So why? Because it is a basic technology!

He lists a few of the reasons there is such a "flame war" going on about templates - the love/hate relationship of developers that have had to work with templating systems already in place, the difference in thinking between developers and designers about what the template should be. He gives the eZ publish template system as an example of this dicotimy, noting that, when it all really comes down to it, the facts are what should speak, not opinions/emotions.