I don't think it's possible to cite a single movie as "the last classic Hollywood type movie" where its focus was entertainment and had movie magic feel to it, but I do think you could make a general list.
Some I'd throw out there for me are Mask of Zorro (1998), the Transporter (2002), the first two Harry Potter films.
What about you guy's. What's your personal list of movies that were sort of the last of that era where movies felt like movies and had something special to them?
Cool, thanks for elaborating. I like a lot of those movies too. You should watch Boorman's Excalibur if you haven't, although it's less 'fun' than any of those. Also has a lot of classic British and Irish actors before they went on to other things.
Funny enough some of your criticisms of LotR sound a bit like the way Tolkien himself sometimes gets criticised - overly stiff and stuffy, impersonal, more focused on the grand scale in a way that's a turnoff for some people... I seem to remember some modern author - can't remember which - saying 'Tolkien's landscapes have more character than his characters'. Which I don't agree with but I can see where the criticism originates, even while liking the books and movies. But it might be a mark of Jackson faithfully adapting the spirit of the books, if they evoke similar criticisms from those who don't click with it.
Yeah, Excalibur is one I intend to watch because I've only seen the trailer for it, but it looks like my sort of thing.