is an edge-of-your-seat thriller. For Lane, whose face is smeared with fake blood and bruises for one of her many chase sequences, it appeals to the conspiracy theorist in her."The grassy knoll, the grassy knoll," squeals the actress, "I think if you're not paranoid, you're crazy."

For accuracy's sake, a complete replica of the Oval Office was built on a Lakeshore Blvd. studio lot, with Lane consulting Secret Service stuffed shirts to steer her away from the Charlie's Angels school of crime fighting.

"They say the biggest mistake is how guns are handled in movies," says Lane. "'You would never hold a gun up like that in real life! You'd shoot yourself!'"

It was right around that Farrah Fawcett-hair era that Lane appeared on the cover of Time magazine as one of the decade's new bubble-gum-popping actress whiz kids in show biz (Brooke Shields was another).

Her subsequent movie credits included The Cotton Club, Streets Of Fire, Chaplin, Judge Dredd and Jack.

Now a divorced mom of a three-year-old daughter (daddy is actor Christopher Lambert), Lane totes her own whiz kid to the set.

But not today.

"How do you tell a three-year-old that mommy's getting shot today and there will be European press all over the set?" she says, laughing.

"I try to choose child-friendly locations, unless I'm offered Gone With The Wind or something. Then I say, `Sorry honey, you're gonna have to deal with being in Tasmania.' I try to choose work that isn't too psychically disturbing at this point for myself as a mother, which is a very spiritual job for me. Being a mother is definitely my priority."

As a mom, Lane also chooses good role model roles with her daughter in mind.

"I like to play women who have a career and an identity of their own --- working women," says the actress. "Not that being a mom isn't a job, but I like that my character has her own ideas and job requirements. Wesley's character says the reason she's assigned to work with him is because he'd be easier on her because she's pretty, which she takes offence to. She's been dealing with this every step of her career. She shows them she can do her job, and do it well."

Lane, already handy with a firearm, didn't need any sharp-shooting training. "My mom's husband is a Vietnam vet, and he used to take me to the firing range," says Lane, whose been shooting since her early 20s. "Around the time I got married," she adds, with a smirk. "No coincidence there!"

Following in the recent kick-ass boot steps of Geena Davis, Lane gets to trudge through murky water and get dirty on this shoot.

"How do you prepare for that? You tell me," she says, laughing. "There are more of these roles around for women now. It's a reflection of real life."

Roles her daughter, who already shows signs of the big screen bug, won't be playing.

"I think she's gonna just skip acting and go right to directing," she says. "She's bossy, which is good. It's a sign of her confidence."


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