'Hobbit' holds off 'Jack Reacher' at box office

• The Tolkien story was No. 1 for the second consecutive weekend
• Comedy 'This is 40' turned in a solid performance
• Newcomer 'The Guilt Trip,' with Barbra Streisand and Seth Rogen, took seventh place

It takes more than a vigilante to unseat a Hobbit.

Despite featuring Tom Cruise and being based on a popular line of action novels, Jack Reacher could muster no better than second place this weekend, falling to The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.

Hobbit took the top spot for the second straight weekend with $36.7 million, according to studio estimates from box office tracking firm Hollywood.com.

Hobbit has raked in $148.9 million in 10 days and will be a solid performer for distributor Warner Bros.

Reacher, too, could find the holidays lucrative. The film did $15.6 million, the upper end of most analysts' expectations.

The action film scored a thumbs-up from 62% of critics, according to survey site Rottentomatoes.com. More importantly: 75% of moviegoers liked it, a critical score if it hopes to perform well through the holidays.

Reacher wasn't the only new film to fall to Hobbit's powers. Judd Apatow's comedy This Is 40 did solid-if-unspectacular business, taking third place with $12 million.

The cartoon Rise of the Guardians was fourth with $5.9 million, followed by Steven Spielberg's Lincoln with $5.6 million.

The only other major newcomer, Barbra Streisand's The Guilt Trip, took sixth place with $5.4 million, meeting most of its modest expectations.

Final figures are due Monday.

Revenues remain up 6% over last year, while attendance is up 5% over 2011, Hollywood.com says.