(MALON 9 KOCHAVIM, Ido Haar, Israel 2007, 78 min., Hebrew and Arabic with subtitles, 35mm)

Thousands of Palestinians have illegally crossed borders into neighboring Israel, seeking work as day laborers in construction. Director Haar follows his subjects closely as a group of nomadic young men flee from police, risk their lives, and sleep in hovels in order to build luxury housing by day. 9 Star Hotel is a devastating documentary portrait of young men caught in an economic and political maelstrom not of their own making- their dreams subsumed by the hard reality of day-to-day survival.