Martinez's Army Time Helps Him Perfect His Roles

Movie actor Olivier Martinez's army service experience is paying off on the set of action films - because he can help co-stars with gun etiquette.

French Martinez was an uncredited consultant on the set of S.W.A.T. and new film Taking Lives, in which he plays a crime fighter, because he helped his castmates bring authenticity to the screen.

He says, "Most of the time when I see an actor playing a cop, I don't believe how he handles his gun. If you don't know how to shoot, you don't know to shoot. You can't fake that.

"I have a lot of experience with guns because I was in the Commander troop in France when I was younger, so I used to shoot all the time with a machine gun.

"In S.W.A.T, when I was with my film actors, I said, 'Don't put the gun on the floor,' and the real S.W.A.T guy agreed.

"I never thought my experience in the military would serve me one day to do anything.

"I didn't get a great souvenir, but I learned how to hold a gun."