It's not old age, for sure. I am 48 and still feel 15 years old inside. Most everything is dumbed down today even more than it used to be. Some of it is because Hollywood has so much entertainment to produce. When I was a kid, there were 3 networks and I think producers were working overtime even then to keep up with demand.
Look at the Munsters, for example. Lame as all get out. Look at Bewitched and I Dream of Genie. The rot had set in way back then. Look at some of the Westerns from the 50's. For the most part stupid, dull, insipid, idiotic plots.
Remember that Doris Day-James Garner movie, where she started selling soap? Remember the gag where the weekly TV show was the same plot week after week, even though the setting might be Nazi Germany one week and the Wild West the next? The kids recognized it, and the adults in the movie didn't.
I think there is a lot of good movies being made today and good shows, too, but you have to wade thru so much dreck to find them.
parsy.
Most everything is dumbed down today even more than it used to be. A couple of years ago, they showed a special of "The 100 Best Comedy Movies" ever made. What struck everyone was that ALL the top 10 movies were over 20 years old. While a few of the top 100 were more recent, none of the very best ones were.
Movies in the past relied on writing, interesting characters, and actual acting. While some of the plots were predictable and sometimes silly, they were interesting to watch, even if only to root for the characters. Modern movies, esp. comedies, come off as merely stupid and fake. I know I'd rather watch the Marx brothers or other old classic than anything made recently. They're just a lot more fun.
Also, while in general I don't approve of censorship, I think the writers in the past wrote better because they had to imply more in situations, rather than let it all hang out. Of course, the audience had to pick up on the clues, too, which meant they had to invest more into the movie, which required more thought (and intelligence?) than is necessary today.