Realism was also integral to the look of the film, even though many of the crime scenes in the film are set in fabulous, forgotten turn-of-the-century industrial ruins underneath modern New York City. Production designer Nigel Phelps set out to establish a look that would convince the audience that these places actually existed.

Phelps says, "It was important to try to have these places fantastic in the story-telling sense of the word, and at the same time to make them as believable and as accurate as possible."

Phelps says while everybody knows how fantastic New York City is above the surface, he hopes he gets people thinking about what lies underneath the city.

"We wanted to illuminate those eerie vestiges of the past and create a visually exciting undercurrent. So that when the police climb down that manhole on Wall Street, everyone believes that that antechamber exists," says Phelps.

While he was able to consult extensive archives on the New York Subway, Phelps found it difficult to research the actual hidden underground city, as few records have been kept. So much of the inspiration for the look came from elements that exist inside and under the Brooklyn Bridge.

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