“Captain America: The Winter Soldier” was the first of the four flicks to enter theaters, and it built high expectations with a smart script, strong acting and an abundance of beautifully executed action sequences. In short, the movie is a first-tier superhero picture that improves on the franchise’s already solid debut, “Captain America: The First Avenger.”  “The Winter Soldier” is set two years after events depicted in “The Avengers,” and Captain America, a.k.a. Steve Rogers (Chris Evans), is settling into life in the 21^st century. 

It would be nice to see Jason Statham try something more demanding than his standard, tough-guy role. Still, he has so thoroughly perfected the part that it’s easy to enjoy his performances. In “Parker,” Statham goes back to the well, playing the title character: a professional thief with an interesting code of ethics. In an early scene, Parker says he won’t steal from people who can’t afford it, won’t hurt people who don’t deserve it and always follows through on a promise. 

It’s been a great year for Marvel, as three of the comic book company’s superhero titles have made their way to the big screen, each garnering critical praise and respectable box-office numbers. “Thor” got things started in early May, followed closely by “X-Men: First Class.” “Captain America: The First Avenger” hit theaters most recently, and it maintained the high quality set by the earlier films.