Hey there, @dreemit! Man, I've missed you!
You mentioned Lord of the Rings! That trilogy is my favourite film of all time (as I see as one movie chopped up into three). And yes, even though they were also taken from pre-existing source material, they were instant classics to the nth degree!
I'm with your teenage children on that (even considering the age difference). I never can excited and passionate about movies like before. A lack of originality? Too much exposure before release? Something is definitely not right and it's a crying shame that those rapturous "feelings" may never return within our lifetime again.
Bless you and hope you're keeping well. :)