Rachel West

Associate Editor / Senior Critic
Rachel West is a former senior producer for ET Canada and Cineplex with a B.A. (Honours) in Film Studies from Carleton University. She has interviewed everyone from Michael Fassbender to Miss Piggy and has reported live from TIFF, SXSW, Star Wars Celebration, Comic-Con, D23, CinemaCon, BAFTA Tea Party, the SAG Awards, and the Golden Globes, among other events. Her film writing and interviews have appeared in publications and outlets including Entertainment Tonight Canada, Global News, Shaw Connect, The National Post, Toronto Film Scene, Cineplex Magazine, CAA Magazine, Mondo Magazine, Discover Toronto, The Weather Network and more. Rachel’s hobbies include introducing herself to cats she meets on the street, travelling, quoting obscure lines from “The Simpsons” and posting all about it on Twitter. Rachel is a member of the Toronto Film Critics Association (TFCA), Alliance of Women Film Journalists (AWFJ) and has served on several film festival juries including the Rising Sun International Film Festival in Japan, the Tallgrass Film Festival and the ICFF Lavazza Inclucity Festival.


Articles by Rachel West:


  • Whistler Film Festival Exile review
    November 29, 2022

    Whistler Film Festival: Exile Review

    Adam Beach is a man both haunted and hunted for his past actions in the Canadian thriller Exile, screening as part of the Whistler Film Festival, available online across Canada on December 5.

  • Whistler Film Festival White Noise
    November 27, 2022

    2022 Whistler Film Festival Preview

    The Whistler Film Festival once again welcomes high-profile international films, ground-breaking Canadian cinema, award-season favourites, exciting short films and, of course, film lovers.

  • Michael Rinaldi in Capsule short film
    November 17, 2022

    Capsule Review: Short Film Goes The Distance

    Clocking in at under 20 minutes, Capsule packs a surprising emotional punch. With moments of gallows humour and true contemplation of human existence, Capsule feels like it is the output of a much more experienced director.

  • Here For Blood Review: Toronto After Dark
    October 22, 2022

    Here For Blood Review: A Bloody Fun Toronto After Dark

    Selected as the Closing Gala presentation for 2022, the Canadian horror-comedy feature directed by Daniel Turres is a wild ride, sure to have the Toronto After Dark audience laughing along as the body count piles up and blood rains down.

  • October 6, 2022

    Tár Review: Cate Blanchett Delivers the Performance of Her Career

    Actor-turned-director Todd Field made us wait 16 years between Little Children and Tár, and friends, it was well worth the wait. In a career of great performances, Cate Blanchett delivers what can be considered the pinnacle of her body of work in this dark character study.

  • Sterling K. Brown and Mark Duplass in TIFF film "Biosphere"
    September 22, 2022

    TIFF 2022: Biosphere Review

    Director Mel Eslyn’s Biosphere was a surprise late add to the TIFF line-up just days before the official start of this year’s festival. With only two public screenings, audiences were asked, nay, begged, not to give away any of the plot’s details because, as it turns out, simply describing what the film is about is a huge spoiler.

  • September 17, 2022

    TIFF 2022: EO Review

    Enduring hardship and strife, as well as kind words and attention along the way, EO’s journey is a beautiful, maddening, sentimental, heartbreaking, and humourous one. Plus, there’s a top-notch cameo from Isabelle Huppert!