Critics unanimously call Sir Orfeo one of the best of the English romances. Though retold in a medieval setting, it seems to lack the concepts that were apparent in other medieval romances. "It lacks, however, any sense of chivalric values and ideals, and though the hero undergoes much suffering in the course of the story, this simply testifies to the power of his [Orfeo's] devotion and is not related to any scheme of self-realization."[16] The main contribute of the success of the story comes from the atmosphere of the storytelling. "...its main success is usually attributed rather to the potency of the magical atmosphere than to any particular skill on the part of the author.... the poem is an outstanding example of narrative skill, and the author's artistry is such that his technical brilliance may be [at first] mistaken for untutored simplicity."[17] There is however no evidence that Sir Orfeo was written by a man, and Breton Lays on which it claims to be based were written by Marie de France. Critic Jeff Rider comments that "What makes Sir Orfeo so remarkable is the degree of critical response it has generated, the high praise it has earned, and the almost utter lack of accord among critics as to its interpretation. The poem seems to be remythified with each reading; each reading makes us feel that the previous one, even yesterday's, was inadequate."[18]
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