SPOILERS AHEAD

In one of the few self-serious moments found in Ridley Scott’s "The Martian," NASA mission director Vincent Kapoor (played by Chiwetel Ejiofor) dramatically questions what stranded Mars astronaut Mark Watney (Matt Damon) must be thinking about as he faces the real possibility of dying alone. This moment is quickly turned on its head as we cut to Watney back on Mars dancing to disco music while excitedly shouting “I’m going to die!”

There are similar moments throughout the film – Watney saying his dick hurt over the deathly lack of food, or when he references himself as “Captain Blondebeard” before setting off for a treacherous 50-day trek – that avert the audiences’ eyes from the real trouble at hand. And while this humor is most certainly welcome, especially with the onslaught of brooding superhero flicks and seasonal Oscar contenders, it also tends to soak up whatever real tension was still left.

This tension is what made the novel the film is based off such an engrossing read. Andy Weir’s bestseller of the same name tells the survival story of the stranded Mars astronaut, and NASA’s attempt to save him more similarly to a lab report than a verbose narrative. And rather than avoid scientific terms that might turn off readers, Weir embraced them.

In the novel, every action Watney makes on Mars has a consequence. We follow entries from his personal journal as he comes across a problem, creates a hypothesis, tests through experimentation, and explains the outcome. Through careful explanation of the math and science behind Watney’s every move, the reader has more reason to fear that something could go wrong.

In Ridley Scott’s adaptation, spectacular achievements such as the first growth of food on Mars or NASA’s creation of a space probe in record time, are dwindled down to mere montages. The idea of a man surviving on Mars for over 500 days should feel like a spectacular achievement. So why didn’t I feel that here?

For one, it’s the humor. Another reason Scott’s picture fails to add any suspense is its lack of silence. Rather than let the situation of being stranded on Mars speak for itself, every serious moment is capped off with a punchline or a cut back to NASA on Earth. Scott fails to embrace the eeriness of a stranded planet by continuously kicking the story forward against its own will.

This all makes "The Martian" sound much worse than it is. Compared to other standard mainstream fare, it still stands above most as an “action” film that refuses to rely solely on set pieces. Its attempt to explain the science, while obviously not as thorough as the book, is a noble effort. And aside from its goofy climax, the plot seems to make some sort of sense. The most unbelievable part is how Matt Damon is supposed be the comic relief character amongst a cast that also includes Kristen Wiig, Donald Glover, and even Jeff Daniels.

To call "The Martian" a comeback for Ridley Scott still feels like a ridiculous thought. After the culturally significant achievements that were "Alien" and "Blade Runner," it’s unreasonable to think the notorious auteur could ever reach such heights again. This comparison to his other work actually does injustice to his career as a whole. While "The Martian" attains above-average mainstream status, it’s also neither challenging nor suspenseful. Like the poster itself, Scott seems to be more interested in the star power of Matt Damon than the wonders of Mars and space travel.