"For a Moment" is a duet song from the 2000 direct-to-video film The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea, sung by Melody and Ariel, with vocals provided by Tara Strong and Jodi Benson.
Summary
In the film sequence, the song is sung by Melody who is enjoying her time as a mermaid under the sea while her mother, once again in mermaid form, is searching the sea for her at the same time.
Melody's lyrics revolve around her love of the sea and being a mermaid, enabling her to spend all the time she wants exploring it. However, Ariel's lyrics are remorseful in the sense that she missed the opportunity to share with Melody the fact that she is part mermaid, and now she is paying the price for it. At the end of the song, Melody cuts Ariel off by singing a big belted note and rides on a whale.
Lyrics
Melody:
Okay, get a grip, get the hang of this flipper,
It's like slipping two feet into one big huge slipper.
This way is left, but which way is right?
Oh, now I'll be circling in circles all night.
Oh, so this is forward, no problem.
I can't believe I can do this and more,
To swim in the sea like I walk on the shore.
Out of my shell, not closed up like a clam,
Look out, sea!
This is me,
Here I am!
For a moment, all of me, is alive and at home in the sea,
I'm swirling and twirling so graceful and grand,
Without stubbing my toes, getting stuck in the sand.
For a moment, life is cool,
I'm a splash in the world's biggest pool,
This is more than my thoughts ever thought it could be
For a moment, just one moment, lucky me! (giggling)
Ariel:
If only for one moment,
I had shared with you all I know.
The sea wouldn't be a mystery,
Oh, why did you have to go?
Melody:
Everything's newer, and brighter, and bluer,
and truer to life than before...
Watch me soar!
For a moment, I can shine, got a grin and a fin that works fine,
My fingers are wrinkly and I really don't care
If all of my curls have curled out of my hair!
For a moment, I can feel,
All the dreams I've been dreaming are real!
Wish my mother could hear it, the sea is my song
For a moment, just a moment I belong.
Ariel:
I will find you my darling,
And the moment that I do,
I'll hold you close, my Melody,
And sing the song of the sea with you...
Together:
(Ariel) Sing the song of the sea with you!
(Melody) For a moment, just a moment I belong!
Trivia
- For a part of this song, recycled animation was used for Melody, from when Ariel swims up from the cavern along with the fish, during the original film's song "Part of Your World".
- Other places from the first film that were revisited during the song are Ariel's Secret Grotto and the area where the scenes from the song "Under the Sea" took place.
- An instrumental version of this song is played during the film's end credits, right after Chely Wright's version of "Part of Your World".
- Tara Strong mentioned in an interview that after she first recorded this song with Jodi, she cried in the booth in Jodi's arms over to how much fun she had singing this song with her.
- The 2023 film Wonka features a song with the same name performed by Calah Lane and Timothée Chalamet, who play the roles of Noodle and Willy Wonka, respectively. It was written by Neil Hannon, who composed the original songs for the film. The song is a cheerful and upbeat tune that expresses the joy of living in Wonka's magical world and forgetting about one's troubles for a moment.
