'Hotel Transylvania' charms families, breaks September record

After a few lackluster weekends, the box office has bounced back. The top twelve movies earned 28% more than last year's corresponding weekend, allowing everyone in the industry to breathe a sigh of relief.

Hotel Transylvania helped the most, breaking the record for highest opening in September (unseating Sweet Home Alabama). Not only did the animated comedy earn $43 million,
audiences gave the family-geared feature an "A" CinemaScore rating. That ensures that Transylvania will post stiff competition to its creepy animated competitor, Frankenweenie, which is opening this Friday. Moms and kids liked the movie even more, with an average rating that topped out at "A+." Besides the record of best September opening, the $43 million handily became the best debut ever for a feature from Sony Pictures Animation.

In second place, Looper also performed above expectations, pulling in $21.2 million. Its clear marketing campaign and positive reviews helped draw in an older male audience In a sign of
changing times, the movie is expected to bring in slightly more, between $23-25 million, from its debut in just one foreign territory: China. The sci-fi movie was a Chinese co-production, allowing it to sidestep the nation's small quota for foreign films.

Universal made a successful bet with Pitch Perfect. In advance of its planned wide release next week, the distributor opened the college-set comedy in 335 theatres. The release exceeded expectations and ended up with $5.2 million, with an impressive per-screen average of $15,200. A friend who caught the a capella comedy over the weekend predicts it will be the "Bring it On of the next generation,"
referring to 2000's popular, tongue-in-cheek cheerleader comedy, which Universal also distributed. That movie finished with $68 million a decade ago. With a $5 million debut in limited release, Pitch Perfect may sing an octave higher than that.

Despite opening on seven times as many screens as Pitch Perfect, Won't Back Down disappointed with $2.7 million, eking out a tenth-place finish. The "parents take back our schools" drama had little marketing support, which Fox reportedly withdrew after predicting a flop. That helped push the inspirational drama near the top of another list--worst opening of a release on 2,500+ screens. Won't Back Down now holds second place on that list, below another Fox release, The Rocker. Despite the poor performance, viewers who showed up gave the picture an "A-" CinemaScore rating. 

This Friday, Frankenweenie will compete for families in search of Halloween-themed entertainment, Taken 2 will put Liam Neeson in the midst of another kidnapping plot, and Pitch Perfect will expand into wide release.