Remember the famous scene in the 1961 West Side Story when the Sharks and the Jets dual off in a finger snapping, choreographed dance routine?

Well, these coordinated, pretty-boy gangs and their hair gel might actually be more entertaining and scarier than any teenage gang member from the new United Artists’ film Deuces Wild.

In an attempt to recreate “da gangsta” code of honor used by 1950s Bronx street gangs, Deuces Wild falls a little flat with its cliched dialogue and failed attempts at being an honest comparison to movies like the revered Reservoir Dogs.

Deuces Wild, directed by Scott Kalvert, is a West-Side-Story-esque film that takes place in Brooklyn during 1958 , “the year the Dodgers moved to L.A,” and apparently the year that street gangs became a little boring.

The narrator of the story, Bobby (Brad Renfro) preps viewers for the story by saying, “it’s the summer the Dodgers left, the summer I fell in love, and the summer the streets of Sunset Park ran red with blood.”

The not-so-intelligent teen gangster Bobby summarizes the entire anti-climactic plot with this sentence.

A member of the “Deuces” street gang that patrols the Sunset Park neighborhood in Brooklyn, experiences his coming of age under the watchful eye of his older brother, the magnetic gang leader Leon (Stephen Dorff).

Answering only to local corrupted mobster Fritzy (Matt Dillon), Leon vows to keep the streets he rules drug-free after losing a brother to a heroin overdose. This is a task constantly foiled by a violent rival gang, the Vipers and their ex-felon leader Marco (Norman Reedus).

To complicate life for the confused Bobby even more, he falls for the sister of a “Vipers” gang member, Annie, when she moves in across the street.

Actress Fairuza Balk trades in her traditional goth gear for saddle shoes and bobby socks in the role of Annie, the ice cold leader of the “Velvets.”

Although they are surrounded by violence and poverty, Bobby and Annie fall in love and hatch a plan to steal Marco’s drug money and escape Brooklyn together. At this point I thought about escaping myself…to the exit door.

Sadly, cruel sneers and innocent fighting words at pizza joints and parks are the most exciting threats of an actual fight until Marco attacks Leon’s girlfriend. Now the pent-up rage of the “Deuces” crew can be released for some serious retaliation.

I can honestly say that I was more entertained watching The Sopranos Vincent Pastore play the role of a local priest and surrogate father to the gang members than I was during some of the melodramatic fight scenes.

If we have learned anything from film history, it may be that the street gang classics like West Side Story have earned their claim to fame from talented acting, creative scenery, a well-construed story and great music.

Unfortunately, this movie seems to lack all of these elements. The lively backgrounds look more like a Hollywood studio backlot than New York streets.

Characters like Leon have charisma and a draw, but just when we want to get to know them, the movie seems to rush to that always famous ultimate final fight scene between gangs. This might be okay, except for the fact that this scene lacks any originality or excitement.

Maybe million-dollar explosions and action-packed shootings have spoiled our generation, so it’s difficult to relate to and appreciate good old-fashioned bat clubbing and fist fights.

But in its attempt to bring back the realism of gang wars, the movie forgets to keep the audience guessing about when the bad boys will strike. The predictability of the film along with its inadvertent humor and a manufactured script are too much to ignore.

So, should you pay $6 for this one? Ahh, “fuhget” about it….wait until it’s on video.

Deuces Wild is rated R for violence, profanity, and sexual references. Running 91 minutes, it is currently playing in theaters.