Animated adventure Monsters vs. Aliens has scored the biggest US box office debut of the year.
It has raked in $58.2m (£41m) so far.

The Dreamworks film, which sees classic movie monsters pitted against beings from outer space, beat the films such as “The Haunting In Connecticut” .

The animation, which features the voice of Reece Witherspoon, saw the weekend’s ticket sales up 39% compared to 2008. Cinema sales in 2009 are beating the recession, according to analysts.

“The recession offers a framework from which movies can do well for people looking to escape,” said Paul Dergarabedian, head of Media By Numbers, which tracks US box office performance.

“But they have to want to escape to these movies. The appeal has to be there, and it clearly was for Monsters vs. Aliens,” he added.