´óÏó´«Ã½

The animated 3D film Hotel Transylvania has set a new high for a September debut at the US and Canadian box office, bringing in $43m (£26.6m), according to studio estimates.

Science-fiction thriller Looper opened in second place with $21.2m (£13m).

It was followed by last week's tied chart-topper, End of Watch which took in $8m (£5m).

In a strong weekend, revenues were $120m (£74m) - up 21% on the same time last year.

"Sony really kind of saved the day here, turning things around after a full month of less-than-stellar box office," said Hollywood.com analyst Paul Dergarabedian.

"The post-summer period didn't exactly set the world on fire," he added.

The family fright film was a return to success for funnyman Adam Sandler whose summer film, That's My Boy, flopped with $13.4m (£8.3m) in its opening weekend.

Sandler provides the voice of Count Dracula as proprietor of a resort catering to Frankenstein, the Wolfman and other classic monsters.

Elsewhere in the chart, Clint Eastwood's Trouble with the Curve, about a baseball recruiter losing his sight, was placed at number four with $7.5m (£4.6m) in box office receipts.

Falling four places, last week's other number one, the horror movie House at the End of the Street brought in $7.2m (£4.5), while new teen comedy-musical Pitch Perfect earned an impressive $5.2m (£3.2m) from 335 theatres to take sixth place.

The weekend's other new release, school drama Won't Back Down, starring Maggie Gyllenhaal and Viola Davis rounded off the top ten with a disappointing $2.7m (£1.7) despite being shown at 2,515 screens.

Other top ten films included the re-release of Finding Nemo in 3D, Resident Evil: Retribution and The Master.