For a film that has wrought so much controversy, Invisible Children’s “Kony 2012” documentary has a lot of heart. Exploring Joseph Kony, head of the Lord’s Resistance Army, a Ugandan guerrilla group, and one of the world’s worst living war criminals, “Kony 2012” aims to “make Kony famous” and is fairly confident it can do so.

The film, which became the most viral video in Internet history after debuting in March, has sparked criticism and complaints. Media brought to light the expenditures of Invisible Children, the nonprofit organization crusading against Kony. Others complained the activists involved barely skimmed the surface of the issue in the short documentary.

To answer the media buzz and numerous critiques, Invisible Children released “Kony 2012: Part II — Beyond Famous.” This second documentary, which has been making headlines itself, was shown by Invisible Children roadies Monday night in Elon University’s LaRose Digital Theatre.

Much like its predecessor, “Part II” leaves quite the impact. Pairing beautiful video footage with terrific graphics, the video seeks to answer questions left by “Kony 2012.”  But what it lacks is the emotional pull of the original documentary.

Opening with clips ripped straight from newscasts, it is clear from the start of "Part II" that its aim is to address criticism, while providing a more in-depth look at the LRA, Kony’s militant group that turns children into soldiers.

But the documentary, while touching and well-executed, does not seem to have the same viral impact as its predecessor. Shorter and slightly more in-depth than the simplified original, the glamorized storytelling of the first film is still there — but muted.

The question is, then, is the film made this way to adhere to critics’ complaints?

“In our day and age, you have to simplify everything for people to get involved,” said junior Leah Randall, who attended the screening. “If you were to just say, ‘There are kids that have guns and are killing people,’ people get it, but if you get more in-depth in this kind of format, people lose interest and don’t care.”

An intriguing difference between the two Kony films is the presence — or absence — of Invisible Children co-founder Jason Russell, who narrated the first film and was present throughout most of it.

The second film is not narrated by Russell, and he is only mentioned once. This likely stems from his arrest and hospitalization a few weeks after the original documentary became an Internet sensation. Russell was seen walking the streets of San Diego naked, yelling and slapping the pavement. While Invisible Children said Russell is in rehabilitation, his return to the organization is still several months away, as evidenced by his absence from the documentary.

“I think it’s cool that they didn’t ignore the negative things,” Randall said. “They aren’t hiding it like some organizations would.”

Freshman Lauren Berk, who serves as secretary of Elon’s Invisible Children chapter, said she sees “Part II” as the perfect way to reach out to critics.

“I really encourage people who are critical of Invisible Children to watch ‘Kony 2012: Part II’ and Invisible Children’s other films,” Berk said.

Berk said she feels the video and its viral predecessor help speak for a generation that “cares about something bigger” than itself.