Rooney Mara in The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

Today the first novel of Stieg Larsson's Millennium trilogy, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, comes to the big screen for the second time as David Fincher's Hollywood adaption of the Swedish crime drama series hits theaters. The Social Network's Rooney Mara stars as the unladylike leading lady, Lisbeth Salander, and she nails the Swedish hacker's silent but deadly demeanor with an emotionally powerful performance. Lisbeth is no damsel in distress, but she's also not the typical sexed up, gun-toting femme fatale we've grown accustomed to in action movies — she's a more complex character than that. Here are the ways Lisbeth proves she's a new kind of kickass heroine. And if you haven't seen or read the story, some spoilers ahead.