Beware sexy Russian men bearing gifts. That seems to be the primary message of Russian Transport, the new play by Erika Sheffer being given its world premiere by the New Group. This uneasy blending of family and crime-themed drama is all too predictable in its depiction of a Russian immigrant family being torn apart by the arrival of a relative from their home country who turns out to have nefarious ends in mind. While the material might work reasonably well as a film—shot in real-life locations that would lend it a natural authenticity—its artifices shine all too clearly onstage.

The Sheepshead Bay family consists of Misha (Daniel Oreskes) and Diana (Janeane Garofalo) and their Americanized teenagers, seventeen-year-old Alex (Raviv Ullman) and fourteen-year-old Mira (Sarah Steele). Their car service business is clearly struggling financially, as evidenced Diana’s demanding that Alex immediately hand over his paychecks from part-time job at a cell phone store.

Their day-to-day routine--marked by much would-be comic, profanity-laced squabbling--is interrupted by the arrival of Boris (Morgan Spector), Diana’s younger brother. Handsome and charming, Boris quickly wins over the teenagers, but his influence on Alex soon reveals a sinister edge, as he enlists him in his human trafficking operation by having him pick up newly arrived, young Russian girls at the airport and delivering them to their unfortunate fates.

You can see where the plot is going from the very beginning, and the attempts by the playwright to give it texture with endless family arguments—the characters snipe at each other with a comic ferocity that feels wholly artificial—proves wearisome. And such moments as when Mira impulsively kisses her uncle romantically and Alex and his father have a confrontation involving a gun he’s smuggled into the house fail to produce the intended shocks.

The business of the proceedings is accentuated both by Scott Elliott’s high-pitched direction and Derek McLane’s awkward two-level set design which makes some of the action difficult to see.

The actors pour much conviction into their performances, to uneven effect. Spector displays such a strong physical presence and charisma that his galvanizing effect on the household is understandable. Oreskes, always a commanding performer, is here given unfortunately little to do, and Ullman and Steele, the latter doubling as several of Alex’s unfortunate passengers, are quite convincing. The marquee draw is Garofalo, and while the actress has clearly worked hard on her accent she seem miscast here and never quite convincing as a tough Russian matriarch. But then again, little about Russian Transport is convincing or, for that matter, transporting. 

Acorn Theatre, 410 W. 42nd St. 212-239-6200. www.Telecharge.com. Through March 10.