Archer lines up leads in 'Wife,' 'Mom'

By PAUL KARON

Anne Archer, best known for her turns as long-suffering wives to Harrison Ford and Michael Douglas ("Patriot Games," "Clear and Present Danger," "Fatal Attraction"), has won the leads in two back-to-back productions about illicit affairs of the heart: Lifetime cabler's "Indiscretion of an American Wife" and indie comedy "Score Mom."

Lifetime's "Indiscretion" --- loosely based on the 1953 Italian film starring Montgomery Clift and Jennifer Jones film --- commences lensing Sept. 22 in Rome and the surrounding countryside. Archer's character, the wife of a highly placed U.S. embassy official, has an affair with the handsome scion of an aristocratic Italian winemaking family.

Michael Murphy ("Manhattan," "Tanner '88") plays Archer's diplomat husband. Cast as the vintner will probably be a well-known Italian leading man, but no deal is final.

George Kaczender ("Ebbie" for Lifetime) will helm the five-week shoot. Script is by Emily Tracy. Pic, expected to air no later than spring 1998, is a joint effort of Lifetime and ABC Pictures Prods. Lisa Demburg is exec producer.

"The film is about a woman who has an affair and all the games that go along with it," Archer said.

She next heads to Chicago to star in "Score Mom," a romantic comedy co-produced by Second City Prods. and Destiny Films, an indie film company. Harold Ramis will also star in the feature, about a relationship between a woman and a man some 20 years her junior.

"It's the story of how this wonderful, sort of ditzy character falls in love with a much younger man, and how older women are better, which we all know is true," Archer said. The youthful swain has not yet been cast.

First-time helmer Diane Titmarsh Alexander also wrote the original screenplay. Distribution has not been arranged.

Archer also appeared in Robert Altman's 1993 "Short Cuts," and earlier this year in the CBS TV film version of the Neil Simon play "Jake's Women," with Alan Alda and Mira Sorvino.

Archer is repped by Ilene Feldman and David Lillard at I.F.A.