It was noted as one of several indigenous-film premieres at TIFF along with "Falls Around Her" and "The Grizzlies". It was also shown on 3 and 5 October at the Vancouver International Film Festival, and because those two screenings in a 1,800-seat theatre were filled, a third date was added which also sold out. It also closed the imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival on 21 October. "Edge of the Knife" is to be distributed internationally by Isuma with a United Kingdom premiere in April 2019 at Curzon Cinemas in Soho, London. "Edge of the Knife", Sandercock said, can be used to teach the language to Haida youth as part of a month-long "language module". She said that some members of the cast and crew, motivated by their work on "Edge of the Knife", had begun receiving new acting roles and begun training others to make movies under the Haida production company Niijang Xyaalas. With grant funding, Sandercock will research the film's impact on the Haida community through 2021. "Edge of the Knife" received positive reviews from critics and audiences. According to Patrick Davies of "The Williams Lake Tribune" in Williams Lake, British Columbia, it "generated a ton of positive buzz" after its festival showings with particular praise for "its storytelling and community-minded approach to filmmaking". Jason Asenap of "High Country News" praised the film's indigenous themes and noted the distinct absence of an "Anglo protagonist's worldview". Asenap called the movie "a window into the inner workings of a Haida community, its members' ideas of justice, humor, and matters as simple as food and daily entertainment". "National Post" Chris Knight wrote: "Its heart and soul transcend language." Teresa Nieman of Screen Anarchy called "Edge of the Knife" "a triumph of Indigenous creativity" whose "commitment to authenticity is admirable". Adrian Mack of "The Georgia Straight" wrote that lead actor Tyler York's "commitment to the role is hair-raising". Nieman also wrote that the "quiet, moody, meditative" film became "truly immersive" because of untouched scenery of Haida Gwaii and because the "characters typically speak in a slow, poetic lilt". "The Globe and Mail" reviewer Barry Hertz commended the filmmakers for "turning a seemingly simple story of human nature into a captivating and at times stunning work" that contains "themes of guilt and redemption" presented "in a vision so distinct and unfamiliar to audiences that the film feels abundantly fresh".